Recounting Skopje – Ivana Sidjimovska

The artistic-based PhD research is related to neoliberal symbolic urban reconstructions with focus on the government-funded makeover of the Macedonian capital, Skopje. Dubbed “Skopje 2014” the urban revamp involves erection of numerous government and cultural buildings (built in exclusively “neo-classical” style), over forty monuments of national heroes (i.e. the ancient hero Alexander the Great), various monumental objects (e.g. a Triumphal Arc) and other reconstructions of facades and bridges (done in “baroque” fashion). Embracing discourses of criticism and civic opposition the artistic research is concerned with the effects the urban renewal has on the public space in Skopje. Informed by subjective citizens’ stories and experiences of the urban as well as binaural sonic observations of the city, the research findings are reenacted in the form of an interactive sonic walk through the city. Guided through headphones, the audience is invited to take an intimate walk and by audio props to re-experience the urban environment performatively.

The project was financially supported by the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung. The audio tour was presented as part of the symposium ‘Curating Exchange. The Institutional As Public’ in collaboration with Press To Exit Project Space. And as part of the exhibition of nominees for the DENES YVAA (Young Visual Artist Award) in collaboration with CAC (Contemporary Arts Centre) Skopje and FRU (Faculty of Things that can’t be Learned).