The impact of legislative and institutional changes on the public culture of Nagykanizsa from the regime change to the present day

Abstract

Public cultural institutions, as places of non-formal learning, offer a wide range of cultural opportunities for different generations. This cultural field has also undergone many changes over the decades. After the change of regime, most of those working in
the field of public education expected this segment of the cultural sector to be restructured, both in terms of legislation and institutional arrangements, as it was still governed by Act V of 1976. It was only after more than 20 years of waiting that the new
Act CXL of 1997 on Museums, Public Libraries and Public Culture was adopted. After that, the profession had to wait another 20 years for another major legislative change in 2017, and now in 2024 a new cultural law is in the making, which is expected to
come into force on 1 January 2025. The study attempts to review the changes in the legal and institutional framework of
public culture from the regime change to the present day and examines the effects of these changes on the public cultural life of Nagykanizsa. It provides an in-depth analysis of the Kanizsa Cultural Centre, the largest and most influential public cultural
institution in the city, and its main historical turning points. It also provides a brief insight into the current situation of public culture, discusses the main problems and describes in detail the activities of the National Institute of Culture in Nagykanizsa.