For several years, Belgrade was regarded as the epicentre of war and aggression. Nobody seems to have wanted war, but every individual had to deal with it nonetheless. Today Serbia has more than ten million inhabitants. Each one of them has his or her own opinion on the country’s history, identity and future. As one of the authors of this atlas puts it, “I don’t know what personal is, what I am, who I am, what Serbia is. All the...
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For several years, Belgrade was regarded as the epicentre of war and aggression. Nobody seems to have wanted war, but every individual had to deal with it nonetheless. Today Serbia has more than ten million inhabitants. Each one of them has his or her own opinion on the country’s history, identity and future. As one of the authors of this atlas puts it, “I don’t know what personal is, what I am, who I am, what Serbia is. All the borders change continually; everything changes from day to day. Nationality, identity – I don’t know, I don’t know what that is.”
For this atlas, Dutch designer Annelys de Vet invited more than thirty young Serbian artists and designers to map their country from an individual perspective. Born of personal experience, the contributions portray moving stories, some cynical or critical, others intimate and vulnerable. The unconventional images offer a new insight into a nation whose identity is scattered. They do not voice opinions but share human observations. The works reach directly to the soul of the society and constitute a confrontational crash course in Serbian culture. Through mapping cultural identity in this way, the Subjective Atlas of Serbia functions as a tool for understanding contemporary society at this place, at this moment.
Introduction: Vladimir Arsenijević
concept and editing: Annelys de Vet
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