Art Weekend Belgrade

Art Weekend Belgrade

Duration: 10 —13 October 2019
Location: Belgrade, Serbia
Implementation: Association Cultural Front (Belgrade) and BLOCKFREI

 

Art Weekend Belgrade (AWB) is an exciting new cultural event that is introducing current Serbian contemporary art scene to the international and local stakeholders and the public. During these four days, AWB offers a chance for experiencing art, meeting the artists, curators, art critics and collectors, as well as exploring the city and its emerging art scene while visiting numerous galleries and cultural venues across the city.

Contemporary art in Serbia has for more than three decades been out of reach of the international art markets and stakeholders, however, due to the generations of emerging artists and the appearance of new galleries, it is recently experiencing a tremendous revival that announces a start-up of a whole new industry.
With a selection of exhibitions of emerging and established Serbian artists, innovative fresh art pieces offered at a range of prices, conference program, think-thank meetings and various performances, AWB is determined to become the place of creative and business opportunities and put Serbia on the international art map.

Purpose of AWB is to create ties and business opportunities for local and international stakeholders and thus enhance the art and culture in Serbia.

Objectives of AWB are:

– to establish a sustainable event which will in four days connect art with business, the local scene with tourism development, young artists with international experts, collectors…

– to create a digital platform for long term international promotion of Serbian and regional contemporary art

– to create a platform for cultural exchange and promotion of good practices with representatives from abroad. This year we will focus on Austrian and Viennese strategies.
AWB is addressing artists and arts and culture-related professionals from Serbia and abroad as well as domicile and international business people and entrepreneurs in the fields of art and creativity.

Outputs expected of AWB are improved visibility and accessibility of Serbian artists in international art and arts-related business, enhanced capacities of Serbian curators and arts-related professionals and improved access of international art dealers and collectors to the Serbian contemporary art market and arts-related business.

Activities foreseen by AWB include the organization of promo exhibitions of Serbian artists and curators, organization of exchange of experience and knowledge among Serbian and international arts-related professionals through conference and workshops, organization of social events and special performing programs to create opportunities for encounters and communication.

The AWB program will consist of the following:

– Exhibition program implemented by more than 20 Belgrade based galleries
– Curatorial/artists talks
– Conference program
– Performances

 

This year Austrian practices will be in Focus – Because of its direct geographical, historical and cultural closeness to Serbia and the former Yugoslav region, Austria will be one of the countries in focus for this year’s pilot edition of the program.

For that purpose, we have invited a number of Viennese based cultural operators in the field of contemporary art to take part in the conference program and think-thank meetings and share with Serbian audience their professional practices and experiences and also engage into an in-depth exploration of the AWB program.
Furthermore, by presenting the Austrian best practices and cultural policies mechanisms in support of the art market development, we would like to engage Serbian decision-makers and local key players from the mentioned field to rethink their own capacities and get inspired for the future steps of establishing and strengthening the art market in Serbia.

 

Invited guests who are based in Austria and who are embedded in the Austrian art scene:

Anamarija Batista, curator, researcher and lecturer
Johanna Chromik, artistic director of viennacontemporary
Max L. Feldman, art critic
Christiane Kada, Styrian State Government,  Department for Cultural Affairs – Awards and Scholarships
Andrea Kopranovic, associate director, Christine König Galerie, Vienna
Ursula Maria Probst, curator and lecturer
Walter Seidel, curator and art critic, curator at “Kontakt” collection of the ERSTE Stiftung
Kate Sutton, art critic

 

AWB is realized by the Belgrade based organization Cultural Front, established in 2000, which successfully runs the independent Cultural centre GRAD for the past 9 years, in cooperation with Viennese based organization BLOCKFREI, that has been established in 2013, which, among others, promotes contemporary art production from ex-Yugoslav region on Austrian contemporary art scene and vice versa.

 

More information available on www.awb.rs

 

The project is supported by Austrian federal chancellery, Austrian Cultural Forum in Belgrade, EU Delegation to Serbia, Embassy of Israel in Serbia, Swiss Embassy in Serbia, Goethe Institute in Belgrade, Swedish Embassy in Serbia, Italian Institute in Serbia, Hungarian Cultural Center in Belgrade, Slovenian Embassy in Serbia and Serbia Creates.

 

AWB TALKS #2 “Focus on Austrian Art Market Practices” →

AWB TALKS →