Tourists can remember Kosovo through magnets and postcards

Artist Berat Hasani is bringing the most iconic monuments of the country visualized on magnets and postcards to foreign tourists. Now they will remember the experience experienced in Kosovo for a long time through these two products.

Postcards used to be the only means of conveying a message from a distance, but it still remains the most unique form of communication, especially if it is done through personalized postcards that bring back the memory of a city. 

In order to save the memories from each city and carry the message to each other, now the artist Berat Hasani is bringing the most iconic monuments of Kosovo through illustrations on postcards and magnets.

Foreign tourists, whenever they visit Pristina or other cities of the country, will now have the opportunity to buy a magnet with illustrations of the most popular monuments from each city, which according to the artist, these types of souvenirs were lacking in the country.

"During the pandemic for me, it was one of the periods that helped me spend my time more productively, and I also developed as an illustrator. During that time, I experimented a lot, I came to have some images that gave me a good feeling that they could have been as souvenir products. Fortunately, the number of tourists has started to increase in Kosovo and I have noticed that there is a lack of genuine products that speak for the country you are visiting, I have visited shops that sell these souvenirs, but there are deficiencies and even the few that are not of good quality", says Hasani.

The capital has many objects through which it is easily identified, but the artist has selected 4 of them.

"Usually I have modest expectations, but in this case with the posts I made on social networks and people's reaction was very good and I was surprised, so many of them asked to have them for themselves, and you buy as products or send to someone as a gift. At the moment the magnets and postcards are in the "Dukagjini" and "Buzuku" bookstores, but soon there will be other points of sale. There are 4 objects from different times , is the Clock Tower as the oldest in terms of construction, then the Ethnological Museum, the Palace of Youth and the Triangle monument," says Hasani.

In addition to Pristina, the artist has also transformed the cities of Mitrovica, Gjakova, Prizren, Deçani into postcards and magnets, and others are in the process of being processed.

"The second illustrated city is Mitrovica, because I come from that place, I have selected 4 monuments, then there is Gjakova, because there are many things presented to me from that place, and I believe I will expand it even more, it is Prizren as a place historical, Peja, I am also working for this city, but soon they will be for sale, as well as the other cities", emphasizes Hasani.

All the illustrations are in black and white, only the Sun is the one that gives a different color to each city.

"It is an inspiration that I have found how to bring these illustrations, being more special, more accessible and pleasant for art lovers. I come from art school, and as a graphic artist I know how to bring things without color and lately we work with colors, we try to bring art with only two colors. People have also asked me about the circle that is in each city, the circle symbolizes the sun, but also the colors that characterize each city, Prishtina is blue, Mitrovica with it green", says Hasani.

The artist has started using the same illustrations for other products.

"The price of postcards is 2 euros, of magnets is 3 euros, these products are mainly aimed at foreign tourists visiting the country, but others are also liking them. There are also visitors who come from Prizren and are in the capital for the first time and want to take a souvenir from this city, the same illustrations will soon come on other products such as bags, but also on jerseys", says Hasani.

Currently, the sale of these products is being done only in two bookstores in the capital, but soon they will be distributed in other cities and towns of the country.