The utopian city for Europe a reality

Art is what builds a utopian city to which the European Union opens its doors. Under the mentorship of artist Jakup Ferri, young people have come together not only to imagine it, but also to project it as a reality. “Kosovo is a country that claims to join the European Union in the future, so it is our desire and the artist best imagines something that could happen in the future after a few decades,” said Ferri at the workshop preceding the exhibition on Europe Day, on May 9.

While the discourse on Europe remains at the policy level, “Europe House” in Pristina shifts the debate to the imagination of the country’s youth. The workshop, led by renowned artist Jakup Ferri, was a profound reflection on what the European Union represents for the generation that aims to live it as a reality. It is one of the many activities planned to mark Europe Day on May 9.

For four hours of intense work, on Saturday at noon, the workshop gathered young people from around the country to build, through art, a utopian city. In the works of around 15 participants, there are no limits, conditions, or compromises, as it seems in reality.

The white blocks on which they project images and throw colors are a symbolic space where borders are bridges where national identities coexist. Their works are a common visual language that will become one to shape the image of the imaginary city of the young people, namely the young women of the country, since all the participants were girls.

Artist Jakup Ferri is known for his unique style of work, especially for the special figures and shapes in his colorful works, for the everyday as a theme and for the works that, among other things, touch on dreams. They have also been transmitted in the workshop as a precursor product of the exhibition titled “Celebrating Europe with Art” with the European “city” that is created as a collage of the participants’ objects and with the works of artist Jakup Ferri. The exhibition will open on May 9 at noon. The event is scheduled to open with a welcoming speech by the acting head of the EU in Kosovo, Eva Palatova.

Artist Jakup Ferri has said that the exhibition will feature three of his works.

"We will have a corner where we will exhibit. I have brought three paintings to decorate the environment a little, but in the city all the events are with my drawings designed by the cooperative's designers," he said.

He explained that the idea of ​​the workshop, in terms of content, is to build a city with surreal buildings.

"I was invited by 'Europe House' to hold a workshop, since they also used the image brand with my drawings. My idea was to try to build a city as utopian as possible, with non-existent but very surreal buildings," he said.

According to Ferri, the artist best imagines the future and thus membership in the European Union.

"Kosovo is a country that claims to join the European Union in the future, so it is our desire and the artist best imagines something that could happen in the future after a few decades. Everything that the participants will design, these figures, buildings, we cut and build a city as a whole. Like that work in Amsterdam, so we are still in the process," said artist Jakup Ferri.

During the work process, it was stated that the workshop is going well and that the girls are very dedicated.

Altina Gashi, a student at the "Ali Sokoli" Medical High School in Pristina, said that despite the direction she chose for her education, drawing and painting have always been her passion. That the workshop was a good opportunity to continue her hobby.

"I am very excited to be part of this workshop. As for my work, I have made a kind of building that is in the shape of a trunk and a tree where on its branches are the flags that are part of Europe and then in general it is the flag of Europe that is stylized with its 12 stars," she said.

It will be the first time her work will be exhibited to the public, and that is one of the exciting things for her.

"This is one of the reasons that prompted me to be part of the workshop, because my work will also be seen in public," she said.

In the workshop, Europe was a kind of map where ideas about it could be painted, dismantled and rebuilt. Thus, the utopian city imagined by the young people was not simply an architectural project, but also a presentation of values ​​such as unity and diversity. As a model for realization, the work that displays the image of Amsterdam, the Dutch capital where the artist Ferri lives and works.

The event comes as part of a program of numerous activities marking Europe Day throughout Kosovo. Music, sports, art and educational events are at the center of collective reflection. This year, the artistic spirit of the organization bears the stamp of Jakup Ferri. According to “Europe House”, local creativity is thus embraced by celebrating European values, culture, inclusion and unity.

There was no lack of interactivity in the workshop. The conversation between the participants and the artists also took place about their future in the field of art. Some study it, and for some it is a pleasure. But, in general, there was more work than conversation in the warm environment of “Europe House” at the table where, in addition to notebooks, pencils and colors, fruit and sweets were also laid out.

The organizer of the events at "Europe House", Engjëll Berisha, said that by inviting Jakup Ferri for a workshop and branding of the institution for Europe Day, they aimed to embody the country's culture on such a day with a local artist.

"We had the initial idea to make the branding inspired by Jakup Ferri, also with his works. If you look at our social networks, everything has the character of his works and in this case we decided that in addition to the design element, the general brand of Europe Day for this year, we decided to create this workshop," said Berisha.

He illustrated how the participants' work is modeled on the work of artist Jakup Ferri.

"One of the specific points of this workshop is that many of Jakupi's works include parts of cities, but with a very interesting presentation, for example, one of the works we see here is inspired by Amsterdam. So we decided to invite people to use elements of Jakupi, but at the same time be inspired by famous objects found in Europe, specifically in EU countries. We are trying to turn an exhibition that opens on May 9 as a summary of all the events for Europe Day," Berisha said.

According to him, when all the participants come together, something very special is created.

"The general idea is to create objects and symbols inspired by the European Union, for which everyone has the freedom to express themselves and use them in the way they wish. This will create a general collage with the works created today," he said.

The exhibition promises to be a window into the European Union through the eyes of a generation that does not see it as a distant project, but as a space that it can shape itself. Through art.