It speaks of an art market that in Bosnia and Herzegovina hardly exists. Collecting, if not a private compensation for nostalgia, remains a privilege of a class that was never truly interested in art. In Tokyo, by contrast, collecting is a sophisticated ritual, often governed by the laws of fashion and conceptual aesthetics. The gallery scene operates as a synchronized mechanism — aimed at sustainability, but also at narrative control.

While the Bosnian-Herzegovinian artist often assumes the role of curator, technician, and negotiator with reality, the Tokyo-based artist can rely on a system of support. As I write this, I can’t help but think — long live our poverty-stricken freedom. But for how much longer?

Exhibition Topografija dijaloga The Topography of Dialogue exhibition is not a collection of identities, nor a catalog of differences. It is an attempt, in an age of global imbalance — where cultural policies are increasingly reduced to instruments of soft power — to ask: what does exchange really mean? Who benefits from dialogue? And where does art actually happen — somewhere between bureaucratized institutions and exhausted independent scenes?

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the artist rarely becomes a professional in the full sense of the word — not because they lack knowledge, courage, or capacity, but because the system was never designed to recognize them, let alone support them. The artist becomes everything: logistician, spokesperson, financial strategist, technician, media worker, and occasionally — if there’s energy left — a creator.

In a country where cultural institutions function as extensions of political arbitrariness, and contemporary art is merely an occasional incident in public discourse, the artist is forced to constantly reinvent themselves. Every exhibition is an act of resistance, every collaboration a guerrilla endeavor, and every attempt at structural work a dangerous affair with invisible bureaucracy.

This is not due to a lack of enthusiasm. On the contrary — there’s too much of it, and precisely for that reason, it burns out. Young artists become exhausted before they even have the chance to become naive. Art academies, instead of nurturing autonomous thought, often function as social mechanisms for postponing reality.

Kolekcionari su rijetkost, a kada i postoje, rijetko razumiju da kupovina rada nije čin milosrđa, nego oblik političkog djelovanja. U međuvremenu, tržište — ako ga uopšte možemo tako nazvati — oslanja se na povremene grantove, međusobne usluge i kult ličnosti koji hrani mikroelite.

Collectors are rare, and when they do exist, they rarely understand that purchasing a work is not an act of charity, but a form of political agency. Meanwhile, the "market" — if we can call it that — relies on occasional grants, mutual favors, and a cult of personality that fuels micro-elites.

Bosnia and Herzegovina suffers from too much silence. Artistic work here does not live within a system of support but in a constant state of improvisation — in the illegality of meaning. Culture here is protocol, not process. A product for export, crafted to promote a zen-like image of positivity. Ironically, this image often comes without real infrastructure — without support for production, without residency programs, acquisitions, curatorial networks, or opportunities for professional development.

What remains? Styrofoam art.

Institutions prioritize self-preservation over art. Art councils are preservationist circles. “Young” artists stay “young” for a decade. Ministries are hostages of daily politics, while the independent scene endlessly juggles between enthusiasm and burnout.

The educational system produces graduates, not thinkers. Students rarely travel, rarely exhibit, rarely read — but they often wait. They wait for calls, grants, approvals, permissions.

Here, art is not a space of freedom — it is a space of constant testing of the permissible. It does not belong in protocols, nor among subjects of aesthetic correctness. Its rightful place is at the edge. Disturbing, unwanted, and painfully precise.

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We’re opening the doors of “Vagon” to you – so don’t wait, step into our wagon of dreams and ideas on time. We're on a constant ride toward new stations and discoveries, and every event is an explosion of creativity.

We write to you revealing our artists, aspirations, and dreams. We write to you about energy, sharing the stories of young, talented artists who want to create in a better world — who want to awaken the consciousness of society and finally reach the point where they can live from their work.

We write about them, about new events, new exhibitions in the gallery, and everything that shapes the cultural scene today. We live in turbulent times, again, because every generation in the Balkans must go through such a period. Still, our train is ready to head toward a better life, and we will write to you about all of this on our blog. About influences, time, social and psychological life, and all the events that affect us and influence the creation of art.

We will be your guide on the waves of new ideas, raising questions, providing answers, and awakening inspiration.

Follow us, because every month we stop at a new station, and these are moments you don't want to miss!

 

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Razmjenjivanje darova i obaveze uzvraćanja darova

Davanje je osnovni društveni čin, gotovo aksiom svake zajednice. Ono nije puko prepuštanje predmeta iz ruke u ruku – to je čin simboličke razmjene značenja i obaveza. Svaki dar povlači sa sobom neizrečene ugovore: obavezu uzvraćanja, održavanja veze, jačanja strukture koja zajednicu drži na okupu. U domenu umjetnosti, ovaj čin postaje još složeniji. Umjetnički dar nije fizički artefakt – to je ideja, koncept, gest. Pitanje nije samo šta je dato, već šta zajednica tim darom čini. Da li ga prepoznaje, odgovara na njega, uzvraća ga pažnjom i vrednovanjem? Zajednica dar umjetnika troši. U vremenu dominacije transakcijskih odnosa, gdje se svaki čin vrednuje kroz njegovu ekonomsku ili političku iskoristivost, umjetnost se suočava s egzistencijalnim pitanjem.  Da li još može opstajati kao prostor razmjene koja nije podložna kalkulaciji?

                                                        GDJE SMO I KUDA IDEMO

U Banjoj Luci, danas je oblačno. Vjetar slab, sjevernog ili sjeveroistočnog smjera, jedva primjetan, poput povjetarca koji donosi laganu svježinu, ali bez značajnih promjena. Temperature će se kretati između 3 i 7 stepeni, što znači da će dan ostati prohladan. Tokom dana moguće su povremene svijetle tačke – sunčani intervali koji će, međutim, trajati kratko, dok će oblaci nastaviti da dominiraju nebom. U večernjim časovima postoji mogućnost slabe kiše, koja bi mogla da padne lokalno, ali bez značajnijeg uticaja. Sutra nas očekuje slična situacija – oblačno sa povremenim razvedravanjima, ali uz nagoveštaj jačeg sjevernog vjetra, koji bi mogao donijeti hladniji zrak. Temperature će pasti za nekoliko stepeni, pa se preporučuje slojevita odjeća. Dugoročna prognoza ostaje neizvjesna – naredne sedmice se najavljuju naizmenične kiše i sušni periodi, sa mogućnošću olujnih naleta koji bi mogli izazvati kraći haos. Preporučujemo da danas budete pripremljeni na sve – kišobran je dobar saveznik, ali ne zaboravite i rukavice, jer hladnoća sa sobom nosi prodornu oštrinu. Ostanite prilagodljivi, jer kako priroda često pokazuje, pravi karakter vremena otkriva se tek u njegovim promjenama.

Dugoročna prognoza donosi promjene koje će obradovati mnoge. U Banjoj Luci, nakon dugog perioda oblačnosti, najavljuju se stabilniji dani. Postepeno razvedravanje očekuje se uskoro. Vjetrovi će oslabiti, a umjesto hladnog sjevernog, očekuje se blagi jugozapadni povjetarac. Krajem mjeseca predviđa se pravo sunčano razdoblje, uz vedro nebo i temperature koje će omogućiti laganiji korak.

 

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