Manifesta 14, a different narrative for Kosovo

At the Grand Hotel in Pristina, the official press conference of the 14th edition of the Manifesta Biennale was held, an event that will officially begin tomorrow.

The Minister of Culture, Hajrulla Çeku, in his introductory speech, said that he is delighted to be part of a government that understands the role of culture. "Starting from Prime Minister Albin Kurti to many departments of the Kosovo government, commitment and support have been at maximum. Of course, the biggest burden falls on the Ministry of Culture, which has committed considerable human resources, both from the cabinet and from the administration, to make sure that everything is going according to plan," said the minister.

Minister Çeku also added that they are not organizing just one biennial. "All of us are jointly developing a different narrative for our Kosovo. A narrative with global resonance, within which there is art and transformation of public spaces, there is youth and community, there is energy and positivity. At the same time there are also paradoxes. Residents of Kosovo, who are organizing the Manifesta, cannot travel without visas in Europe. Manifesta is also our political lobby to walk without discrimination on our European integration path. Manifesta is also our legitimate demand for equal treatment with other peoples in the region and in Europe".

In this edition of the Manifesta biennial, 102 participants from 30 countries of the world will participate, where 40 participants will be from Kosovo, in which case 45 new works created for the Manifesta will be presented.

Other speakers at the conference were the mayor of the Municipality of Prishtina, Përparim Rama, the director of Manifesta, Hedwig Fijen, the curator Catherine Nichols and the architect Carlo Ratti.