The Balkan Xpedition begins soon within the CORNERS project. The Xpedition will include 30 artists and researchers from seven European countries who are exploring the outer regions and coasts of Europe in search of stories and inspiration for their new work. This joint venture “across the hilly Balkans” begins in Zagreb on 15 April 2012 and ends in Rijeka on 29 April 2012.
We are ahead of the Balkan Xpedition, which is a part of the first phase of the European project CORNERS R&D (2011.-12.) consosting of a series of 4 artistic Xpeditions through the outer regions, the corners, of Europe.
The North Xpedition, organized in August 2011, explored stories in the northern corners of Norwey and Sweden, with the vast nature and the Sami indigenous community extending far beyond national borders. The Caucasus Xpedition, in October 2011, went on discovering the corners of Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan, travelling through different post Soviet regions with autonomous enclaves and break-away republics. The East Xpedition (18-31 August 2012) will be exploring the hidden narratives around the borders of Ukraine, Poland, Belarus, Lithuania and Kaliningrad region.
The Balkan Xpedition, to be held from 15 to 29 April 2012, will be exploring the old and new narratives, legends and stereotypes in a territory that has never allowed itself to be captured within borders, be it historical, geographical, economical, geopolitical, ideological, or regarding religion or language… We will be exchanging stories with the people from Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo, Albania and Montenegro.
The Xpedition will visit Jasenovac, Užice, Prizren, Shkoder, Cetinje, Mostar, Dubrovnik and lots of other surprising places throughout the Balkans, and at each station artists and researchers will present their work, perform small actions in public space, organize discussions and roundtables.
During the journey, the artists will meet engaged citizens and cultural activists, who will guide them to their stories, creations, thinking and life situations.
NGO EXPEDITIO will provide assistance in organizing a part of the Balkan Xpedition in Montenegro.
CORNERS is an intercultural arts project, created and developed by six culture organisations from four countries situated in some way at the corners of Europe: Intercultand Umeå 2014 European Capital of Culture -Sweden, Exodos Ljubljana - Slovenia, Drugo More and Pogon – Croatia, and City Culture Institute, former Gdansk 2016 - Poland.
CORNERS project is looking for invisible knowledge and new information, for stories which have been overlooked, ignored or avoided by European cultural organisations and artists. We want to place ourselves on the edges of the Greater European space and gain an overview, a new perspective, on Europe as a whole.
In the next phase of CORNERS, the proposals for new works of art will be commissioned by the partners in the project and distributed across Europe. Stories heard on the street corners of one part of Europe will be retold on the street corners of another.
CORNERS is supported by: the EU Cultural programmel, Swedish Institute, Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Croatia, the City of Zagreb, the City of Ljubljana, Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia, Arts Council of Northern Ireland and others.
Join us!
Blog - http://www.cornersofeurope.org
