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ERIAC Program

Projects, initiatives,
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Some of my happiest memories as a small child are related to my father telling stories during the long, cold nights of a winter when there were power cuts due to the Yugoslav wars. Those were the happiest moments during those unhappy times.

My father’s strong bond with his seven children was a foundation of safety and is an inspiration for all of us, brothers and sisters. He inspired us to love, to care, to respect and feed others, to repair things, and me in particular, to write and create stories. I was 19 in 2003 when I made my debut documentary, Welcome to Plemetina (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cg1_TnTUC00), my first collaborative story to be shown to the public. Since then, I have made more than fifty short and feature documentaries. All of the films were influenced by, and resulted from, the consequences of the Kosovo War in 1999, with stories that were unknown to most people. I was driven by the desire for change, mutual respect and solidarity, wanting to transform ‘racial’ differences into human ones through film, especially in Kosovo, where all the communities lived in separation in the aftermath of the war.

My father passed away in 2010, and almost a year later I moved to live in France with Charlotte, a girl who is not from the Roma community but who has become one of us. Six years on, I myself became a father. Manon was the first to be born, and was followed by Alice two years later. With each, it was true love at first heartbeat—a love story to the sky and back. As I look into their eyes, I’d like to remember my own infant memories, my father and mother gazing at me. So I feed, carry, wash, clean, hold, cook, warm, freeze and unfreeze, and watched the first moves, tears, screams, laughter and steps, and heard the first words—and it was only then I realized that I had learned the power of cultural transmission and that I actually cared. It was in France that for the first time in my life I had begun to live without a Roma community around me—and it seemed an impossible mission. Passing on Romani to our children is another challenge—one that shouldn’t be a single person’s job, especially when you are surrounded by a French-speaking community.

This collaborative collection of folk tales transmits culture to us all, Roma and non-Roma alike: they have metaphors to enjoy, stories to interpret, social interactions and behaviours to understand. Such stories are passed on from one generation of heroines and heroes to the next—as we are all the protagonists of our own narratives. Though the stories our father told us children were based on what he himself had done, they became transformed into folk tales in the act of storytelling, and we will now never forget them.

Two things motivated me to collect Roma folk tales: 1) Almost every child in contemporary society spends a lot of time on their smartphone or tablet, and the parents often look forward to these quiet spells  so as to do some housework or simply take a break. There is no space left to tell stories, it has ceased to be a cultural practice. 2) Some of the stories that my father used to tell me as a child are now forgotten.

These two phenomena spurred me on this journey of Roma folk tales. To make access to these tales easier, and gain the trust of people so they are happy to relate them, I asked three young Roma in three different regions of Kosovo—Djemalj Mustafa in Plemetina, Elvis Avdiu in Lipljan, and Ekrem Mustafa in Gjilan—to visit their neighbours, friends and family, and request them to share their stories. I myself took to messaging apps to find out if friends and family in the diaspora (mostly in Germany) had more tales—hoping some would be the same as those my father used to tell us. Together, we collected fifty folk tales, from which I selected seven.

The selection principle was simple, because I chose those stories that reminded me of my father. In many of the tales I encountered the same words, metaphors, phrases and lines that my father would use—and that is something I find invaluable.

As culture is in constant shift, I thought it might be interesting to adapt these stories to different milieus, while keeping the plot and the mythology. While writing, I changed the characters’ look, fleshed out the descriptions, made the meaning deeper, and replaced male heroes with heroines.

When I was done, I chose young Roma artists to illustrate the stories. I invited Flaka Kokoli, an award-winning animator from Pristina, to head a ten-day workshop for the illustrators, Enisa Mustafa, Selma Emini, Samira Emini–Berisha, Amina Berisha, Hana Kirsten, Sabina Mustafa and Dashnim Berisa. Each artist chose a story to illustrate during the ten days of the residency, with the guidance of Flaka Kokoli and her colleagues, Ari Xharku and Fatlum Neziri.

Text: Sami Mustafa


Sami Mustafa was invited by curatorial team of Manifesta 14 to develop a storytelling project in the Center for Narrative Practice. The outcome of the project is the book published in Albanian, English Romanes, and Serbian.

Manifesta Booklet Final Romanes & English Version Manifesta Booklet Final Albanian & Serbian Version

 

Current
2023 Anne Hill Blanchard Uncommon Artists Series: “Life – The Art of Ceija Stojka” by Timea Junghaus Open Call ERIAC/Villa Romana: Artist Residencies in Florence ROMHERITAGE: Itineraries of Roma Cultural Heritage 2023 ERIAC Call for Associate Members Decorated Farmhouses of Sweden – Artistic Residency Scholarship ERIAC partners with ARCA and Artists at Risk to launch a residency programme for Ukrainian Roma artists ERIAC launches the Barvalipe blog – So Nakhlo PROUD ROMA TALENT Competition Winners Announced! ERIAC V. General Assembly A Parable on Europe and the Roma In Memoriam Mustafa Asan aka RR Marki (1960-2022) Sinti and Roma – Between Romanticizing and Othering -Performative Symposium on December 10, 2022 ERIAC exhibition: Woman to Woman. Małgorzata Mirga-Tas and Eugen Raportoru. “Reenchantment. Małgorzata Mirga-Tas”, directed by Anna Zakrzewska, premiers today! The World Premiere: “Reenchantment. Małgorzata Mirga-Tas” directed by Anna Zakrzewska. DEADLINE EXTENDED: PROUD ROMA TALENT Competition Finissage: The Abduction from the Seraglio at the 59th International Art Exhibition La Biennale di Venezia ERIAC launches PROUD ROMA TALENT Competition Fairytales from my Grandfather. Sami Mustafa at Manifesta 14 Manifesta 14 closes on 30 October 2022 Dariya Kanti starts her artist residency at Villa Romana, Florence Modifying Error: 404, towards green, digital and inclusive societies- ERIAC at KotorArt Festival Eugen Raportoru: Gelem, Gelem Samudaripen Transcontinental Collaboration: A Concert of Sinti and Roma and American Jazz All the Birds are Praying for our Children. Exhibition Opening. Manifesta 14: Roma Rajni: RomaMoMA Library ft. Daniel Baker and Farija Mehmeti ROMA PAVILION AT TRIENNALE MILANO OPENING 2022 CALL FOR ASSOCIATE MEMBERS FOR ERIAC How to Tell Stories that Matter? ERIAC brings Manifesta 14 to Belgrade Official Opening! The Abduction from the Seraglio, 59th Biennale di Venezia Roma for Roma: Documenting the Oral History of Roma Refugees from Ukraine G O S S I P S ANNOUNCEMENT: ERIAC THEMATIC SECTION COORDINATORS SELECTED OPENING CONFERENCE: PLURILINGUAL POLICY EXPERIMENTATION (PLE) in the context of Romania OPEN CALL FOR APPLICATIONS REF SERBIA-ERIAC INTERNSHIP PROGRAM CALL FOR ERIAC THEMATIC SECTION COORDINATORS SUPPORT FOR THE ROMA PEOPLE OF UKRAINE ERIAC BARVALIPE ACADEMY ELECTS TWO MEMBERS TO SIT ON THE ERIAC BOARD ‘PROUD ROMA’ out now! The pride of a people as a social engine. The Proud Roma manifesto Proud Roma. The message of love from a nation without borders “I believe stories can change the world” New Short Film Inspiring Pride in Roma Identity to Premiere This Month Members appointed to the ERIAC Barvalipe Academy IV GENERAL ASSEMBLY MEETING OF THE EUROPEAN INSTITUTE FOR ARTS AND CULTURE (ERIAC) HYBRID ERIAC launches the Barvalipe Digital Library of Critical Romani Scholarship Finalists of the Tajsa Roma Cultural Heritage Prize 2021 announced! Open Call: Artist Residency in Florence for Two Roma Contemporary Artists in 2022 Proud Roma Free Europe celebrates Romani Language Day PROGRAM PODRŠKE ROMSKIM MUZIČARIMA ERIAC and Department of Romani Studies at Södertörn University join forces to develop university courses We are launching the second course of Barvalipe Roma Online University in 2021 Selma Selman at the Kasseler Kunstverein International Membership Engagement Initiative 2021 Art and Healing – A Roma Contribution for Europe RomaMoMA Nomadic Library as A Roma Contribution for Europe ERIAC Partners Mark Annual Day of Remembrance for Roma Holocaust Victims My feminism does not shout, but it tells stories: Małgorzata Mirga-Tas and Edis Galushi in conversation with Joanna Warsza CALL FOR CURATOR: Collateral Event at the La Biennale di Venezia – 59th International Art Exhibition ERIAC Serbia: “AND YOU GOD SURVIVED” – DOCUMENTARY SCREENING ERIAC EXHIBITION: NO INNOCENT LANDSCAPE – VALÉRIE LERAY CALENDAR OF ACTIVITIES TO COMMEMORATE AUGUST 2 – International Roma Holocaust Memorial Day OVERVIEW ON POETRY AND LITERATURE ON ROMA HOLOCAUST WORKING AGAINST FORGETTING – RomaMoMA WHO WAS ANNA MARIA STEINBACH? ROMAREMEMBER 2021 – CAMPAIGN VISUAL IDENTITY Art and Healing – A Roma Contribution for Europe Europe’s Roma Remember Holocaust Victims as part of the annual commemorations of August 2nd ERIAC collaborates with Autostrada Biennale to showcase Roma contemporary arts in Kosovo NewsSpectrum Fellowship for minority-language media opens first call for applications OPEN CALL FOR ROMANI FILMMAKERS, DIRECTORS AND PRODUCERS! ERIAC Serbia Internship Programme ERIAC WELCOME ITS FIRST EUROPEAN SOLIDARITY CORPS (ESC) VOLUNTEER ERIAC JOINS THE EUROPEAN PROJECT “WEAVE – Widen European Access to cultural communities Via Europeana” NewsSpectrum Fellowship for minority-language media opens first call for applications Become a Member of ERIAC – 4th call for members is open! Conference | Roma Youth: Together for Emancipation and Empowerment ERIAC develops visual identity for the 50th Anniversary of the First World Roma Congress OPEN CALL FOR CONTRIBUTIONS INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE: “Hate speech and Antigypsyism in the Media” ERIAC launches Roma component program within the framework of the German Presidency of the Council of Europe in 2021 OPEN CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: REF SERBIA-ERIAC INTERNSHIP PROGRAM Open Call: Artist Residencies in Florence for Two Roma Contemporary Artists in 2021 ERIAC commemorates the victims of National Socialism with the digital festival “Diaspora Europe” Diaspora Europe Digital: Ferenc Snétberger – Solo Guitar Improvisations Diaspora Europe Digital: Sinti_ze Jazz Diaspora Europe Digital: Sinti_ze Jazz Special with The Rosenberg Trio Diaspora Europe at ERIAC Space ERIAC Statement at the “Digital High-Level-Conference launching the new “EU Roma Strategic Framework for Equality, Inclusion and Participation” until 2030 Andaro Angluno Vast | First-Hand – Nihad Nino Pušija PUBLIC STATEMENT OF THE EUROPEAN ROMA INSTITUTE FOR ARTS AND CULTURE (ERIAC)REGARDING THE “MEMORIAL TO THE SINTI AND ROMA VICTIMS OF NATIONAL SOCIALISM”, THREATENED BY PLANS OF THE DEUTSCHE BAHN ROMA CULTURAL HISTORY INITIATIVE (RCHI) “Re-thinking Roma Resistance” – EVZ-funded project begins FutuRoma – Collateral Event of the 58th International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia ERIAC-CEU Internship Program Begins
Upcoming
ERIAC joins the Council of Europe in hosting the Roma Youth Together 2023 Conference ERIAC@Timisoara 2023 “Safeguarding Our Romani Language” – Third International Conference PRFE organizes panel discussion as part of the ongoing census campaign in Hungary ROMA(NI) PAST – EUROPE’S FUTURE. WHY EMBRACING EU’S LARGEST ETHNIC MINORITY MATTERS | ERIACNET4EU Romani pride films ‘Hurjasa’ and ‘Proud Roma’ set to premiere in Serbia on 29 and 30 September Launching the 2022 Census Campaign in Hungary: Meet our Local Team ROMAMOMA STREET FESTIVAL BY OFF-BIENNALE BUDAPEST WEBINAR | Roma and Memorialization: Advancing Recognition and Remedy for the Dark Chapters of the Past and their Impact on the Present ERIAC EXHIBITION: MANOLO GÓMEZ. YA ES HORA – NOW IS THE TIME WEAVE CONFERENCE – 16 September Discover the WEAVE toolkit – online workshops Bringing the EU close to Roma | ERIACNET4EU: ERIAC NETWORK TO ADVANCE ROMA INCLUSION BY COMBATTING AND PREVENTING ANTIGYPSYISM IN THE EU The Transnational Roma Movement Marks Roma Holocaust Memorial Day ‘Hurjasa’ / ‘We Will Fly’ set to premiere 22 July OPEN CALL FOR CONTRIBUTIONS to the BARVALO exhibition – ERIAC is seeking an artist to visually represent the STRUCTURE OF ANTI-GYPSYISM MAY 16 | ROMANI RESISTANCE DAY WEBINAR: Teaching the History of Minorities in Europe: the Case of Roma History Eugen Raportoru’s exhibition includes marginalised perspectives and creates a platform for feminist artmakers The Biennale is a Red Carpet for Artists RomaMoMA Library ft. Daniel Baker and Farija Mehmeti at Manifesta 14 The Roma Exhibition as a Space for Transnational Alliances Open call for Romani filmmakers for production of regional short film nurturing Roma pride and culture ERIACNET4EU: ERIAC NETWORK TO ADVANCE ROMA INCLUSION BY COMBATTING AND PREVENTING ANTIGYPSYISM IN THE EU ERIAC joins the Council of Europe in hosting the Roma Youth Together 2022 Conference ERIAC is proud of Polish-Roma artist Małgorzata Mirga-Tas ‘Re-enchanting the World’ in Venice La Biennale approves Roma Exhibition in Venice ERIAC EXHIBITION: TAJSA ROMA CULTURAL HERITAGE PRIZE TAJSA ROMA CULTURAL HERITAGE PRIZE CEREMOMY 2021 ERIAC EXHIBITION: ROMANI ČHIB | ROMANI LANGUAGE SAFEGUARDING OUR ROMANI LANGUAGE – SECOND INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE Artist Talk: Ľuboš Kotlár and Norbert Olàh in conversation with Teodora Talhoș Tajsa Prize 2021 Roma Self-representation in the History of the Venice Biennale | Discussion ERIAC announces the Roma Exhibition – Collateral Event at the 59th La Biennale di Venezia to be held on 23 April – 27 November 2022 ROMAMOMA LIBRARY AT SAVVY CONTEMPORARY NewsSpectrum Fellowship for minority-language media opens first call for applications ERIAC joins MANIFESTA 14 “the European Nomadic Biennial” Conference: Critical Approaches to Romani Studies ERIAC EXHIBITION: ROMA RESISTANCE AND RESILIENCE Keeping the flame of Romani Resistance Alive: the Transnational Romani Resistance Week OPEN CALL: Caricature Competition for Artists of Roma Origin JOAKIM ESKILDSEN and NIHAD NINO PUŠIJA: A PHOTOGRAPHIC JOURNEY INTO ROMA LIVES CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS Family Archives INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE: “Hate speech and Antigypsyism in the Media” International Conference “From Slavery to Movement and Policies” RESIST! The Art of Resistance Diaspora Europe: Ferenc Snétberger – Solo Guitar Improvisations Diaspora Europe: Sinti_ze Jazz – The Rosenberg Trio Diaspora Europe: Sinti_ze Jazz Diaspora Europe: Family Archives DIASPORA EUROPE AT VOLKSBÜHNE ERIAC joins MUCEM to curate “BARVALO” – an exhibition about Roma Diaspora Europa: The Day I am Free. The Story of Katarina Taikon (29.March – POSTPONED) Winners of Künstlerhaus Villa Romana in Florence 2020 announced!
Past
Sami Mustafa: Fairy Tales that Tell Your Story, and Cultural Transmission over Space and Time WEAVE WEAVE Collective Remembrance – Eugen Raportoru: Gelem, Gelem Samudaripen ERIAC and WEAVE work for metadata curation of Roma community collections European Anti-Racism Summit 2022 ARTromnja: a video project on Roma women artists and changemakers Symposium: Institutions and Resistance – Alliances for Art at Risk Chapter 23 by Kal band on Serbian National TV and Radio The Role of Artist Residencies in the Promotion of Roma Contemporary Art ERIAC joins the 12th meeting of the Council of Europe Dialogue with Roma and Traveller civil society Delegation of the Council of Europe´s Advisory Committee on FCNM Visited ERIAC ‘Proud Roma in Free Slovakia’ Launched to Encourage Participation in 2021 National Census World Music Day at ERIAC SERBIA The Transnational Romani Resistance March video is out! Official Opening of ERIAC Serbia ON-LINE COURSE ON ROMANI CULTURE FOR THE STAFF OF THE INSTITUTIONS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION Winners Caricature Competition Announcement of Artist Residency Winners 2021 in Villa Romana, Florence EXTRAORDINARY Meeting of the General Assembly of European Institute for Arts and Culture WORLD ROMA CONGRESS. 50th Anniversary Exhibition CULTURAL EVENING WITH ERIAC DURING 3RD ADI-ROM MEETING ERIAC STRATEGY 2021-2025 III. GENERAL ASSEMBLY MEETING OF THE EUROPEAN ROMA INSTITUTE FOR ARTS AND CULTURE (ERIAC) ONLINE Diaspora Europe Opening Germany takes over the Presidency of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe Critical Pedagogy, Romani Emancipation and Post-COVID Education Open Call: Romani Language Teachers, Translators, Interpreters Andaro Angluno Vast | First-Hand Safeguarding our Romani Language – International Conference Roma Cultural History Initiative – updates Webinar: “Commemorating the Victims, Remembering the Heroes” #RomaRemember: Joint International Campaign for Roma and Sinti Holocaust Remembrance 2020 OPEN CALL: ROMANI LANGUAGE BOOK ILLUSTRATOR HAJDE TE KHELAS – ERIAC Dance Contest RESULTS OF THE ERIAC ARTS AND CULTURE INNOVATION PROGRAM ANNOUNCED! Online Video Series – Katitzi Exhibition ERIAC ARTS AND CULTURE INNOVATION PROGRAM – CALL FOR APPLICATIONS! “Stay at home & Make Music” Online Family Music Competition Became a Member of ERIAC – 3rd call for members is open! International Roma Day Online: Roma Couch Festival Performing the Museum – Online Exhibition ERIAC Questionnaire on COVID-19 impact on Roma arts and culture ERIAC hosts an Extraordinary General Assembly to assess the impact of Covid-19 on Roma arts and culture PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT REGARDING COVID-19 OUTBREAK FUTUROMA exhibition opens in Villa Romana in Florence (29. April) Diaspora Europe: Event series of ERIAC and Volksbühne Berlin 2020 “Who is afraid of identity politics?” ERIAC joins the discussion at the CEU ERIAC is awarded a grant from the European Cultural Foundation Alina Serban – winner of the 1st Tajsa Roma Cultural Heritage Prize TAJSA PRIZE CEREMONY AND DORANTES CONCERT Barvalipe Academy holds its second meeting in Berlin ERIAC IMPACT – public presentation of the ERIAC achievements and plans ERIAC celebrates its second General Assembly in Berlin Finalists of the Tajsa Roma Cultural Heritage Prize 2019 announced! Roma Tangible Heritage Symposium – Stockholm Secretary General of the Council of Europe Marija Pejčinović Burić visited ERIAC KATITZI – A LITERARY CHARACTER ROOTED IN REALITY CHROMA – THE FUTURE IS ROMA – WE PASS THE MIC TO EUROPE ERIAC at the Timisoara Biennale ERIAC at the International Seminar on Countering Distortion and Protecting the Civil and Human Rights of Roma TAJSA PRIZE 2019 Teachers from the Academy of Anti-Discrimination Education visit ERIAC ERIAC Promoted the FUTUROMA Pavilion in Venice ECF PRINCESS MARGARITA AWARD ERIAC joins EC consultations about the future of Roma policies for Roma Dr. Michael Groß, Consul General of Germany in Krakow, visits ERIAC ERIAC’s Roma Tangible Heritage Network (RE)CONCEPTUALIZING ROMA RESISTANCE TEARS OF GOLD/ SOWNAKUNE JASFA International Conference “IS ‘AUSCHWITZ ONLY SLEEPING’? SINTI AND ROMA NARRATIVES AFTER THE HOLOCAUST” Schoolclash visiting ERIAC’s Exhibition “Roma Women Weaving Europe” on its last Week ERIAC contributes to the CEU Summer School “Romani Identities and Antigypsyism” 2019 Florin Nasture and Miguel Angel Vargas appointed as new members of the ERIAC Barvalipe Academy Sead Kazanxhiu appointed as the new member of ERIAC Pakiv Board ERIAC contributes to the report on the future of the EU Roma Strategy ERIAC presents Gorki’s “Roma Armee” in Bucharest Two Paid Internship Positions open at ERIAC for CEU Romani Studies Program Alumni ERIAC and Villa Romana welcomes applications for 2-months Artist Residency in Florence Katarína Mathernová, Deputy Director General at DG NEAR visits ERIAC A Feminist Reading of Roma Political Movement: A conversation with Roma women activists, scholars and artists Filiz Polat and Erhard Grundl, Bundestag MPs (Greens), visit ERIAC ERIAC hosts a group of high-school students from Lycée Jacques Amyot in Melun, France OPENING OF FUTUROMA Exhibition at the 58 La Biennale di Venezia ERIAC at the 2019 ASN World Convention at Columbia University in New York Timea Junghaus, art historian, executive director of ERIAC is lecturer/panelist in the C-Map Symposium of MOMA, New York ERIAC welcomes U.S. Ambassador Grenell “THE BEST CHILD IN THE WORLD” – A PERFORMANCE BY ALINA SERBAN TO CELEBRATE THE INTERNATIONAL ROMA DAY Second call for ERIAC associate members is open! “Neglected Voices: The Global Roma Diaspora” – Harvard University conference under Honorary Patronage of ERIAC ERIAC Hosts CAHROM Members During Thematic Visit to Germany Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas speaks about ERIAC in the Bundestag Transgenerational Knowledge Transfer Symposium, Belgrade (ERIAC CINI) ERIAC Barvalipe Academy Holds its First Meeting in Belgrade ERIAC General Assembly Appoints Eight New Members to the Barvalipe Academy The FUEN Non-Kin-State Working Group Visits ERIAC Albania’s Roma Cultural Heritage Event, Tirana (ERIAC Cultural Institutions Network Initiative Program) Arts, Culture, Remembrance: A Croatian Delegation Visits ERIAC Stiftung EVZ´s Latscho Diwes Programme Visits ERIAC