Kuma International

Kuma International is an international research center open in 2018 in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, dealing with aesthetics in the aftermath of war, war memories and identity, combining academic research with a platform for exhibition projects and community engagement, and it is dedicated to visual arts and aesthetics in the aftermath of war and violence, war memories, trauma and identity from post-conflict societies, focusing mainly on Bosnia-Herzegovina and former Yugoslavia. Our original approach is the intersection between academic research and a concrete platform for exhibition projects and community engagement which creates a unique synergy between researchers, academics, curators and visual artists on one side and the local community on the other. Kuma International is based on the idea of creating a safe environment for production and discussion, in which artists, researchers and members of the local community can connect and reflect on the role of the art produced in the context of conflict and trauma. Kuma International has a particular focus on the Bosnian diaspora, and we would like to give the opportunity to Bosnian artists scattered all around the world to gather in Sarajevo and to be supported in their artistic projects. With a multidisciplinary perspective and interdisciplinary approach, Kuma provides a platform to facilitate the development and production of socially engaged art projects from post-conflict societies in a critical context because we believe that engaged art offers the best possible occasion for the artists and their community to recover from collective and personal traumas. Kuma wants to provide a forum for direct exchange between professionals from the region and abroad, as well as a point of interaction with local communities, promoting internationally relevant artistic production, research, and discussion in Bosnia and Herzegovina and beyond.