![Cover for: Matera](https://www.eurozine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/f4f746c2084f8c86f85e205cae862b16.jpg)
The city of Matera will be a European Capital of Culture in 2019. At the heart of a deprived area that was once a byword for southern Italian poverty, it has undergone major changes since 1945, thanks to government intervention and growing tourism. Mariavaleria Mininni looks at how its prospects continue to change.