The Ministry of Culture with 300 thousand euros in the second attempt to buy art

Almost five months after it failed to buy works of art and 247 thousand euros went to the surplus, the Ministry of Culture has opened the call to buy "sculptures, drawings, graphics, textiles, ceramics, industrial design, digital art, video art, photography, performance, installations, compositions and other works". In December, he pompously came out with the list of beneficiaries, but after 48 hours he canceled the whole process, which provoked public reactions

All visual art artists who want to sell a work to the state have the opportunity to prepare an "offer". The Ministry of Culture has opened a public call for 300 euros to buy works of art. Creators should calculate that the lowest price they will be paid is 1.500 euros. For the highest, there is no figure.

This call of MKRS comes almost five months after the central institution in the country failed to buy works of art and 247 thousand euros went into surplus.

Based on Thursday's public call, MKRS will purchase "sculptures, drawings, graphics, textiles, ceramics, industrial design, digital art, video art, photography, performance, installations, compositions and other works."

Through this call, the MKRS aims to "collect, preserve and maintain the works of art created by local artists, enrich the state art fund, initiate the market for the sale and purchase of art in Kosovo and to promote local and international works of art through the development of public diplomacy".

Enrichment of the state fund is intended without spaces for the placement of works and professionals for their maintenance. Only MKRS knows where the purchased works will be placed and has never revealed.

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Those who learn the calling must fill out the applications and submit them to the Ministry of Culture. Works must be submitted in photographs or PDF.

However, applicants must be citizens of the Republic of Kosovo, apply with only one artistic work, there must not be any conflict of interest between the applicant and the Ministry of Culture and provide proof of the authorship of the artistic work.

"The application evaluation process will be carried out by one (1) professional jury that is appointed by decision of the Minister of the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports", it is written in the call that will be open until June 6.

At the beginning of March of this year, the Government of Kosovo decided to buy works of visual art with one million and 50 thousand euros for the next three years.

"The amounts foreseen for the purchase of works of art by year are: €300,000 (three hundred thousand euros) for the year 2022; €350,000 (three hundred and fifty thousand euros) for the year 2023; and €400,000 (four hundred thousand euros) for the year 2024. The Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports is obliged to include the amounts within the budget limits for the respective years", is written in the second point of the Government's decision.

The Ministry of Culture took the first step for the purchase of works of art at the end of last year. But it had gone wrong. On December 9, the process of purchasing works of visual art - announced with pomposity and inaugurated as an initiative to help artists through conferences - was invalidated by the Ministry of Culture. This was not thought through. It didn't take him more than 48 hours after he made the decision and published the list of works he bought for a quarter of a million euros, to cancel the entire procedure. He had canceled it after a small protest of some 20 artists in front of MKRS, while the debate among the artistic community had taken off.

The way the 68 beneficiaries were selected was one topic. The amount with which some of the works were paid - which reaches 7 thousand euros - was the other. The budget of 247 thousand euros received from the Economic Revival Package had gone into surplus. At that time, professor Adem Rusinovci also came out against the process, as he considered that a public call could not be made to help artists and works to be paid up to 7 euros.

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KOHA has reported several times that the National Gallery of Kosovo has over 900 works in its collection and there is a lack of space, as well as a lack of staff to maintain them. That there are no conditions was also confirmed in January of last year when 125 works that once occupied a place in the "Grand" hotel were moved there. There is a lack of spaces and professionals who maintain the works.

On the other hand, the state has been aiming to build a contemporary art museum for more than a decade, but still does not have a location for it. It is not yet known where the works to be bought will be placed and what strategy will be used to enrich the state with works of art.