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Kuwait Times
31-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Kuwait Times
Sarajevo street art marks out brighter future
Bullet holes still pockmark many Sarajevo buildings; others threaten collapse under disrepair, but street artists in the Bosnian capital are using their work to reshape a city steeped in history. A half-pipe of technicolour snakes its way through the verdant Mount Trebevic, once an Olympic bobsled route - now layered in ever-changing art. 'It's a really good place for artists to come here to paint, because you can paint here freely,' Kerim Musanovic told AFP, spraycan in hand as he repaired his work on the former site of the 1984 Sarajevo Games. Retouching his mural of a dragon, his painting's gallery is this street art hotspot between the pines. Like most of his work, he paints the fantastic, as far removed from the divisive political slogans that stain walls elsewhere in the Balkan nation. 'I want to be like a positive view. When you see my murals or my artworks, I don't want people to think too much about it. 'It's for everyone.' During the Bosnian war, 1992-1995, Sarajevo endured the longest siege in modern conflict, as Bosnian Serb forces encircled and bombarded the city for 44 months. Attacks on the city left over 11,500 people dead, injured 50,000 and forced tens of thousands to flee. But in the wake of a difficult peace, that divided the country into two autonomous entities, Bosnia's economy continues to struggle leaving the physical scars of war still evident around the city almost three decades on. Bosnian street artist and rapper Adnan Hamidovic (aka Frenkie) poses during an exhibition showcasing his tag artworks at a gallery in Sarajevo. Bosnian street artist Benjamin Cengic sits next to his signature 'Flower Graffitti' in his creative space. A photo shows the facades of old buildings renovated with murals by Bosnian street artist Benjamin Cengic and his creative team in Sarajevo. A photo shows the facades of old buildings renovated with murals by Bosnian street artist Benjamin Cengic and his creative team in Sarajevo. A photo shows the facades of old buildings renovated with murals by Bosnian street artist Benjamin Cengic and his creative team. Bosnian street artist Kerim Musanovic puts the finishing touches to his painting on the former Olympic bobsleigh track on Mount Trebevic, near Sarajevo, on May 26, 2025. (Photo by ELVIS BARUKCIC / AFP) Young Bosnian street artist paints on the half-pipe wall of former Olympic bob-sleigh track, on Mount Trebevic. 'A form of therapy' 'After the war, segregation, politics, and nationalism were very strong, but graffiti and hip-hop broke down all those walls and built new bridges between generations,' local muralist Adnan Hamidovic, also known as rapper Frenkie, said. Frenkie vividly remembers being caught by police early in his career, while tagging trains bound for Croatia in the northwest Bosnian town of Tuzla. The 43-year-old said the situation was still tense then, with police suspecting he was doing 'something political'. For the young artist, only one thing mattered: 'Making the city your own'. Graffiti was a part of Sarajevo life even during the war, from signs warning of sniper fire to a bulletproof barrier emblazoned with the words 'Pink Floyd' - a nod to the band's 1979 album The Wall. Sarajevo Roses - fatal mortar impact craters filled with red resin - remain on pavements and roads around the city as a memorial to those killed in the strikes. When he was young, Frenkie said the thrill of illegally painting gripped him, but it soon became 'a form of therapy' combined with a desire to do something significant in a country still recovering from war. 'Sarajevo, after the war, you can imagine, it was a very, very dark place,' he said at Manifesto gallery where he exhibited earlier this year. 'Graffiti brought life into the city and also colour.' 'A way of resisting' Sarajevo's annual Fasada festival, first launched in 2021, has helped promote the city's muralists while also repairing buildings, according to artist and founder Benjamin Cengic. 'We look for overlooked neighborhoods, rundown facades,' Cengic said. His team fixes the buildings that will also act as the festival's canvas, sometimes installing insulation and preserving badly damaged homes in the area. The aim is to 'really work on creating bonds between local people, between artists'. Mostar, a city in southern Bosnia, will also host the 14th edition of its annual street art festival in August. With unemployment nearing 30 percent in Bosnia, street art also offers an important springboard to young artists, University of Sarajevo sociology professor Sarina Bakic said. 'The social context for young people is very difficult,' Bakic said. Ljiljana Radosevic, a researcher at Finland's Jyvaskyla University, said graffiti allowed youth to shake off any 'nationalist narrative or imposed identity'. 'It's a way of resisting,' Radosevic said. — AFP
Toronto Sun
28-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Toronto Sun
Sarajevo street art marks out brighter future
Street artists in the Bosnian capital are using their work to reshape a city steeped in history Published Jul 28, 2025 • 3 minute read Street artist Kerim Musanovic puts the finishing touches to touches to a painting on the former Olympic bobsled track at Mount Trebevic, near Sarajevo. Photo by ELVIS BARUKCIC / AFP Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page. SARAJEVO — Bullet holes still pockmark many Sarajevo buildings; others threaten collapse under disrepair, but street artists in the Bosnian capital are using their work to reshape a city steeped in history. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account A half-pipe of technicolour snakes its way through the verdant Mount Trebevic, once an Olympic bobsled route — now layered in ever-changing art. 'It's a really good place for artists to come here to paint, because you can paint here freely,' Kerim Musanovic told AFP, spraycan in hand as he repaired his work on the former site of the 1984 Sarajevo Games. Retouching his mural of a dragon, his painting's gallery is this street art hotspot between the pines. Like most of his work, he paints the fantastic, as far removed from the divisive political slogans that stain walls elsewhere in the Balkan nation. Old buildings renovated with murals in a city which still bears the physical scars of war three decades onELVIS BARUKCIC/AFP Photo by ELVIS BARUKCIC / AFP 'I want to be like a positive view. When you see my murals or my artworks, I don't want people to think too much about it. 'It's for everyone.' Plan your next getaway with Travel Time, featuring travel deals, destinations and gear. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. During the Bosnian war, 1992-1995, Sarajevo endured the longest siege in modern conflict, as Bosnian Serb forces encircled and bombarded the city for 44 months. Attacks on the city left over 11,500 people dead, injured 50,000 and forced tens of thousands to flee. But in the wake of a difficult peace, that divided the country into two autonomous entities, Bosnia's economy continues to struggle leaving the physical scars of war still evident around the city almost three decades on. 'A form of therapy' 'After the war, segregation, politics, and nationalism were very strong, but graffiti and hip-hop broke down all those walls and built new bridges between generations,' local muralist Adnan Hamidovic, also known as rapper Frenkie, said. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Frenkie vividly remembers being caught by police early in his career, while tagging trains bound for Croatia in the northwest Bosnian town of Tuzla. The 43-year-old said the situation was still tense then, with police suspecting he was doing 'something political'. For the young artist, only one thing mattered: 'Making the city your own'. Graffiti was a part of Sarajevo life even during the war, from signs warning of sniper fire to a bulletproof barrier emblazoned with the words 'Pink Floyd' — a nod to the band's 1979 album The Wall. Sarajevo Roses — fatal mortar impact craters filled with red resin — remain on pavements and roads around the city as a memorial to those killed in the strikes. When he was young, Frenkie said the thrill of illegally painting gripped him, but it soon became 'a form of therapy' in a country recovering from warELVIS BARUKCIC/AFP Photo by ELVIS BARUKCIC / AFP When he was young, Frenkie said the thrill of illegally painting gripped him, but it soon became 'a form of therapy' combined with a desire to do something significant in a country still recovering from war. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Sarajevo, after the war, you can imagine, it was a very, very dark place,' he said at Manifesto gallery where he exhibited earlier this year. 'Graffiti brought life into the city and also colour.' 'A way of resisting' Sarajevo's annual Fasada festival, first launched in 2021, has helped promote the city's muralists while also repairing buildings, according to artist and founder Benjamin Cengic. A photo shows old buildings renovated with murals by Bosnian street artist Benjamin Cengic and his creative team who seek to 'create bonds' between peopleELVIS BARUKCIC/AFP Photo by ELVIS BARUKCIC / AFP 'We look for overlooked neighbourhoods, rundown facades,' Cengic said. His team fixes the buildings that will also act as the festival's canvas, sometimes installing insulation and preserving badly damaged homes in the area. The aim is to 'really work on creating bonds between local people, between artists'. Mostar, a city in southern Bosnia, will also host the 14th edition of its annual street art festival in August. With unemployment nearing 30 percent in Bosnia, street art also offers an important springboard to young artists, University of Sarajevo sociology professor Sarina Bakic said. 'The social context for young people is very difficult,' Bakic said. Ljiljana Radosevic, a researcher at Finland's Jyvaskyla University, said graffiti allowed youth to shake off any 'nationalist narrative or imposed identity'. 'It's a way of resisting,' Radosevic said. Canada Editorial Cartoons Sunshine Girls Relationships Editorials
Int'l Business Times
28-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Int'l Business Times
Sarajevo Street Art Marks Out Brighter Future
Bullet holes still pockmark many Sarajevo buildings; others threaten collapse under disrepair, but street artists in the Bosnian capital are using their work to reshape a city steeped in history. A half-pipe of technicolour snakes its way through the verdant Mount Trebevic, once an Olympic bobsled route -- now layered in ever-changing art. "It's a really good place for artists to come here to paint, because you can paint here freely," Kerim Musanovic told AFP, spraycan in hand as he repaired his work on the former site of the 1984 Sarajevo Games. Retouching his mural of a dragon, his painting's gallery is this street art hotspot between the pines. Like most of his work, he paints the fantastic, as far removed from the divisive political slogans that stain walls elsewhere in the Balkan nation. "I want to be like a positive view. When you see my murals or my artworks, I don't want people to think too much about it. "It's for everyone." During the Bosnian war, 1992-1995, Sarajevo endured the longest siege in modern conflict, as Bosnian Serb forces encircled and bombarded the city for 44 months. Attacks on the city left over 11,500 people dead, injured 50,000 and forced tens of thousands to flee. But in the wake of a difficult peace, that divided the country into two autonomous entities, Bosnia's economy continues to struggle leaving the physical scars of war still evident around the city almost three decades on. "After the war, segregation, politics, and nationalism were very strong, but graffiti and hip-hop broke down all those walls and built new bridges between generations," local muralist Adnan Hamidovic, also known as rapper Frenkie, said. Frenkie vividly remembers being caught by police early in his career, while tagging trains bound for Croatia in the northwest Bosnian town of Tuzla. The 43-year-old said the situation was still tense then, with police suspecting he was doing "something political". For the young artist, only one thing mattered: "Making the city your own". Graffiti was a part of Sarajevo life even during the war, from signs warning of sniper fire to a bulletproof barrier emblazoned with the words "Pink Floyd" -- a nod to the band's 1979 album The Wall. Sarajevo Roses -- fatal mortar impact craters filled with red resin -- remain on pavements and roads around the city as a memorial to those killed in the strikes. When he was young, Frenkie said the thrill of illegally painting gripped him, but it soon became "a form of therapy" combined with a desire to do something significant in a country still recovering from war. "Sarajevo, after the war, you can imagine, it was a very, very dark place," he said at Manifesto gallery where he exhibited earlier this year. "Graffiti brought life into the city and also colour." Sarajevo's annual Fasada festival, first launched in 2021, has helped promote the city's muralists while also repairing buildings, according to artist and founder Benjamin Cengic. "We look for overlooked neighbourhoods, rundown facades," Cengic said. His team fixes the buildings that will also act as the festival's canvas, sometimes installing insulation and preserving badly damaged homes in the area. The aim is to "really work on creating bonds between local people, between artists". Mostar, a city in southern Bosnia, will also host the 14th edition of its annual street art festival in August. With unemployment nearing 30 percent in Bosnia, street art also offers an important springboard to young artists, University of Sarajevo sociology professor Sarina Bakic said. "The social context for young people is very difficult," Bakic said. Ljiljana Radosevic, a researcher at Finland's Jyvaskyla University, said graffiti allowed youth to shake off any "nationalist narrative or imposed identity". "It's a way of resisting," Radosevic said. When he was young, Frenkie said the thrill of illegally painting gripped him, but it soon became "a form of therapy" in a country recovering from war AFP
Boston Globe
30-03-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
A renaissance across the board for US in World Figure Skating Championships
Alysa Liu, performing during the World Figure Skating Championships exhibition gala at TD Garden on Sunday, is the first US women to win the singles title since Kimmie Meissner in 2006. Globe Staff Advertisement And Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up That collective performance sets up Team USA for an unprecedented three individual gold medals at next winter's Olympics in Milan. Until last week the Yanks never had produced a trio of world champions. Not since 1996 when Todd Eldredge and Michelle Kwan prevailed in Edmonton had the US taken both the men's and women's laurels. Related : And with Alisa Efimova-Misha Mitrofanov of the Skating Club of Boston and Ellie Kam-Danny O'Shea finishing among the top seven, the US also picked up a third pairs entry for the Games for the first time since 1994. Also for the first time since the Sarajevo Games in 1984 the Americans will have a full complement of 12 entries for the four disciplines. It was a star-spangled renaissance across the board and fittingly it happened in Boston with its rich history of skaters like This was the first time that the world championships were staged in the States since they were held at the Garden in 2016. Since then the sport has been dealing with dwindling interest from a public that at various times since the turn of the millennium has been outraged, confused, bored, and disgusted by skating's self-created follies. Advertisement The Salt Lake judging scandal with its unsavory backroom dealings gave credence to critics who long considered the competition rigged. The subsequent switch to a 'fix-proof' scoring system was bewildering to audiences accustomed to a simple 6.0 format. Then came the multiple migraines involving the Russians, who exploited young skaters, then doped them. Their government's brutal invasion of Ukraine three years ago made the performers pariahs while also depriving skating of its most dominant country over the past three decades. The larger issue for the ISU has been to attract an audience that is younger and more global through better fan engagement and 'event delivery,' especially for spectators in the arena. 'Providing an experience that they remember,' said president Kim Jae-youl. Related : If that meant making a skating competition more like a rock concert and a social media magnet, the federation finally was ready 'to be relevant to the next generation.' After test-driving its new look at the Grand Prix Final in France in December, the ISU went all-in on Causeway Street, where there was the right arena (filled to the rafters daily), the right audience (knowledgeable and passionate), and the right host. The Skating Club of Boston did a superb job of organizing and marketing the event at a time when it was still mourning the loss of skaters, coaches, and parents in the January plane crash in Washington. The building was nearly sold out all week, even for Friday afternoon's rhythm dance. Spectators were treated to novelties like a colorful entrance gate where competitors were introduced. Advertisement Each skater was interviewed before heading off to the kiss-and-cry area to await the scores. For the contending group, whoever was in first place sat in the 'Leader's Chair.' Before and after each performance swirling lights and thumping music provided an immersive, if not dizzying, experience. 'Athletes have come up to me and said we feel the winds of change,' Kim observed. Skaters, encouraged to build their own brands, now have access to the federation's photos of them for their personal use and have their hashtags posted alongside their names on the LED rink boards. 'I think that's something that our sport needs right now and I'm really happy,' said Malinin, who has become the sport's foremost entertainer with his aerial acrobatics (including his 'raspberry twist' and two-footed backflip), his 'Quad God' merch and his inventive music ('I'm Not a Vampire.') 'I feel excited when I hear the loud music and the cheering. It gets me pumped for the event and I'm sure the other skaters feel the same way.' What the sport most needs after the grim Beijing Games with its dictatorial COVID restrictions and doping controversy is a fortnight of style and sizzle in one of the planet's most fashionable cities. Surely a Milanese designer can shape a more comfortable Leader's Chair. John Powers can be reached at
The Guardian
05-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Meet Fear and Gibson, the new Torvill and Dean of GB Olympic ice dancing
Great Britain have a new couple ready to make magic on the ice. With 12 months to go until the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics, Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson are winning medals and turning heads in the sport of ice dancing. They have skill and charisma that carries echoes of Torvill and Dean, but their soundtrack is less Boléro, more Beyoncé. Just off the back of a bronze medal at the European championships, Fear and Gibson closed out their routine with a free dance to a medley of Beyoncé hits. Including a section that Fear has previously described as involving some twerking, the couple are doing things differently to generations that have gone before and building a connection with a new generation of fans. 'Connecting with the crowd is something that brings us so much joy and is a huge focus of our training and our performance,' says Fear, who was born in Canada but moved to the UK at the age of two. '[We choose] music that is entertaining and gets people on their feet because we get so much energy from the crowd and we hope to give them energy and a nice escape, too. I think that it's something that we really prioritise in our craft.' For Gibson, who is from Prestwick, embedding effervescence and emotion into their dancing is instinctive. 'I think for us it's a natural way of performing in the sport and we choose music because we love that music and it lights us up and so in turn our performance is more energetic and real,' he says. 'I think it's great for the sport. You buy tickets to watch a competitive sport, but you're also getting a show at the same time. And if you can get the crowd going and get them feeling something and just really lighting them up, I can't think of anything better than that.' As for Queen Bey herself, Fear says it is the singer's confidence that inspires. 'She just … embodies confidence and empowerment,' she says. 'It's the sheer expression of who she is and her inner power. And it's just something that I think as performers, we really strive to have ourselves. So to be able to play that character and draw upon that within ourselves is something that has been very rewarding this season of just finding more confidence as who we are as people, what we want to promote as our personalities and our expression. And it's just been an amazing vehicle for us.' Then there's the small matter of two other iconic figures. Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean's flawless gold medal performance at the Sarajevo Games in 1984 remains both the pinnacle of British ice dancing and the last moment the sport truly cut through with the public (the Boléro dance reached an estimated TV audience of 24 million people). For Fear and Gibson the pair are both models and inspiration. 'I wouldn't be skating if it wasn't for them creating their show,' says Gibson. 'And, of course, their legacy is massive in the UK. Everyone knows them, what they've achieved and created over the years, the way they have taken the sport and changed it is an inspiration. Their creativity is something we both admire so much and try to foster in our own careers as well. And, yeah, they're just legends.' Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion Finding success at the Winter Olympics is an abiding struggle for British athletes, with only 34 medals in the history of the Games and just two medals on the board in Beijing three years ago. Expectations may have risen for Fear and Gibson after medalling for a third consecutive European championship, but the pair are not focused on a place on the podium in 12 months' time. 'Satisfaction-wise, we want to skate two performances the absolute best that we can at the Olympics and leave the ice just feeling so proud and like there's zero regrets and nothing that we would ever do differently,' says Fear. 'If we then throw an Olympic medal on top of that, that's a bonus.'
