The remarkable resilience of cities of arts: the challenge of a new renaissance in Florence

This chapter contributes to the debate on urban and regional economic resilience by proposing some reflections focused on cities of art. In particular, we explore the stable resilience of cities of art facing the challenge of the second modernity and the globalization process. We present three case studies of lateral and transversal innovation occurring in Florence through cross-fertilization and serendipity between cultural and creative clusters (the ‘Florence and Science’ exhibition, the use of laser technologies for conservation, and the discovery of the Stendhal syndrome). These may well represent a ‘new Renaissance’ combining arts and sciences as a result of a commonly-shared and embedded value.