Art residency 2022,
“A/R Cagliari-Skopje”

The exhibition “A/R Cagliari-Skopje” aims to unite the works made during the Art Residency in 2022 between the two places (Skopje / Sant Antioco, Sardinia). A/R (andata e ritorno; round trip) is a travel diary of artists, their ideas and confronting the novelties of the acquired experience. The goal of unifying the creation is to develop an idea of bringing together young artists through art, culture, diversity in living, but also similarities in culture and tradition in the regional frameworks of Europe that share common values.
Here, we place the unification in a wider Mediterranean-Balkan geographical framework where the art, culture and tradition of young authors from Skopje and Sardinia (R. Macedonia and R. Italy) can be connected in a specific artistic traditional way.
The accent in the works of art spontaneously created the contrast of the landscape between a central Mediterranean, geographically isolated region with its specificities (culturally, historically and contemporary), and the landscape of the city of Skopje as part of the Macedonian mountain-limited landscape, isolated culturally, historically and contemporary- politically between the Balkans and the Mediterranean.
The works with which the young authors are presented in the Museum of the City of Skopje and from both sides were created in different media, photography, digital drawing, film, sound. All are from the field of visual fine arts, but also music, or rather sound segments, which reflect and enrich the figural space of some of the contents of the authors’ works of art.
For Macedonian authors Lina Damjan and Ana Spasova, photography prevails as a medium. The photographic lens of the two authors reflects their different focus on the sensations of the artistic experience as treatment and artistic approach. Ana Spasova explores architecture. Her photographs reflect the Mediterranean setting and the magic of history and culture, which stands static next to the contemporary and still dominates the values of civilization in a special way. Lina Damjan intervenes in the photographs and refines them in computer graphics and real content and gives space to imagination and emotions, creating the original feeling and representation of her experiences during the artistic residency in Sant Antioco.
The exhibition entitled “A/R Cagliari-Skopje” also presents works by young artists from Sant’Antioco, as well as one from the capital of Sardinia, Cagliari. Chiara Alexandra Young, Marco Manconi and Davide Mariani.
The artists from Sardinia in the period from 18.09.2022 to 02.10.2022 stayed in the Artistic Residence of the Association “Macedonida”, “Atinska” 2, Skopje where they created their works and on 01.10 they presented a final work exhibition in the premises of the residence. Also, Macedonian artists from Skopje in the period from 02.10.2022 to 16.10.2022 stayed in the art residence of the association “Otovolante Sulcis”, in Sant Antioco and on 15.10 they presented their works of art in the City Gallery at the Municipality of the city of Sant Antioco.
Gordana Velkov
Art historian
The exhibition is supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Macedonia and the Embassy of the Republic of Macedonia. Italy in Skopje.