Broadening horizons and influencing practice
Jun 28, 2023
Source
Royal College of Midwives Podcast
Summary
Jo Tunner, from the RCM Podcast, interviewed Maria Velo Higueras (RCM), Emily Miscioscia (RCM), Silvia Amman-Fietcher (ZHAW) and student midwives Sara Irlanda (RGU) and Zeina Bannaan (Lebanon university) about the International Student Midwives Network and the importance of international perspectives in midwifery.
Public Discussion : Everyone Wants a View, KRAK, Bihać, Bosnia-Herzegovina
Nov 19, 2022
Summary
KRAK Center for Contemporary Culture (Hamze Hume Street, Bihać)
Saturday, November 19, 2022, at 7 pm
Irfan Hošić in conversation with Alban Muja, Jonathan Blackwood and Sabina Šabić
Public discussion Everyone Wants a View is an opportunity to bring attention to at least two important issues by using Bihać as an example – the shaping of public space on the one hand and the issue of collective environmental awareness on the other. The starting point for the conversation will be the same-name sculpture by the artist Alban Muja, which after several months of planning was placed on the roof of Kombiteks skyscraper in the Hatinac neighborhood of Bihać. By placing it in a dominant location within the city view and stepping into the public space, Muja's sculpture actually strikes the individuals who privatize the river bank and shape it according to their narrow-minded views. Therefore, this intervention is a distinct criticism addressed not only to those with extremely exclusive access to the river banks, but also a direct reminder to the authorities that they are obliged to protect the common good and natural wealth by all means to the satisfaction of all citizens.
In addition to Alban Muja as the author of the art intervention, the discussion will also see the participation of art historian Jonathan Blackwood, expert on cultural and artistic situations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Sabina Šabić, activist in the field of the protection of Bosnia and Herzegovina's rivers. This is an opportunity to raise awareness of the endangerment of water assets in the environment, but also to mark a promotion – placing an art object in the city area.
This project is being implemented by KRAK Center for Contemporary Culture. The curator is Irfan Hošić, project partners are the City Administration of the City of Bihać and the Government of Una-Sana Canton. The implementation of the project is supported by the Open Society Foundation Bosnia and Herzegovina. Administrative support during the implementation of the project is provided by the Institute for Spatial Planning Bihać, the Tourist Board of the City of Bihać and the Local Community Hatinac. The public discussion is supported by the British Council
Macedonian Performance Art Presented in Switzerland
Aug 26, 2022
Summary
An article in the Macedonian cultural portal "UMNO" which reviews an exhbition of Macedonian video art that I curated for a programme on contemporary Macedonian performance art, organised by Maricruz Penalloza and Verica Kovacevska, and hosted by the Tinguely Museum, Basel, Switzerland
Universities co-host summit to discuss North-East's cultural life
Feb 22, 2023
Source
Aberdeen Live
Summary
Press coverage of the inaugural Aberdeen Cultural Summit hosted by RGU in collaboration with the University of Aberdeen, Friday 3 March 2023. The summit was addressed by the chief executive of Aberdeen City Council Angela Scott, RGU Principal Professor Steve Olivier, amongst others.
Students from RGU Organise Event to Support victims in Ukraine
Mar 8, 2022
Summary
This was an online fundraising exhibition co-organised with Fine Art and Design students at Gray's School of Art, in response to the Russian aggression against Ukraine beginning on 24 February 2022.
The exhibition was associated with an organised teach-in chaired by myself and featuring guest speakers from Belarus and Moldova, as well as recent graduates from Ukraine and Russia.
The exhbition raised over £1,000 for Ukrainian charities and NGOs and was subsequently voted RGU Community project of the year.
Event "Intersections between Contemporary Art and Football" at Technopolis, Nikšić, Montenegro
Oct 20, 2023
Source
Grad Kulture, Montenegro
Summary
I was invited to give a lecture on art and football by the National Museum of Montenegro, to accompany their exhibition "Great Dream of Great Friends", held in Cetinje in September-October 2023, on intersections between art and football in the country. (Details here: https://narodnimuzej.me/2023/12/06/pravi-san-velikih-prijatelja/)
The lecture was covered on Montenegrin television and in a national cultural portal as the article shows.
Film on X Research revealed created by RGU on research that explored Eu citizens living in the UK through Brexit and Covid
Apr 12, 2023
Source
X (twitter)
Summary
Filming of a short with staff from the RGU communication.
A short film was shot for the series “Research Revealed” on our research EU citizens living in the UK through Brexit and Covid
North universities aim to provide digital platform for Orkney heritage tales
May 8, 2021
Source
The Northern Scot
Summary
A team of academics from two north universities are aiming to create a digital story platform to celebrate the heritage, culture and identity of the Orkney Islands.
Tiny Scots village which 'disappeared in a sandstorm' 300 years ago to be explored in new project
Feb 7, 2022
Source
Daily Record
Summary
Historians will explore the legends of a tiny village that disappeared in a sandstorm 300 years ago - amid superstitious claims the disaster was punishment for whisky smuggling.
The history and folklore of Culbin in Moray is to be revisited during a new project led by Robert Gordon University and Moray Libraries.
Interdisciplinary Workshop: Creative approaches to the energy crisis
Jun 17, 2024
Summary
Creative practitioners including artists Kate Downie, Alison Scott and Maja Zećo, the filmmakers Sara Stroud and Callum Kellie, the writer Shane Strachan, and the composer Dylan Dutot Mayne delivered presentations at the interdisciplinary workshop at the University of Aberdeen.
Why tiny artworks and a figure clad in a white soundproof suit will be turning Leicester into outdoor gallery
Feb 22, 2022
Source
Leicestershire Live
Summary
The event will take place in arts venues and public spaces across the city from Friday, February 25 to Sunday, February 27.
The three-day takeover is organised by national charity UK New Artists (UKNA) - which aims to champion the next generation of creativity by supporting and developing the careers of artists in the first 10 years of their practice.
Artist Maja Zeco performs ‘Silencer’ clad in a suit created from thick white soundproof panels, not able to hear most sounds or feel vibrations. Look out for her performance starting at The Guildhall Museum and roaming the streets via the Cathedral, St Martin’s Square, Leicester Market, LCB Depot and Curve. You can follow her performance or just have a chance encounter (Friday 1.30pm-2.30pm and 5.30pm-6.30pm starting at The Guildhall Museum, and Saturday 12 noon-1pm at Soft Touch Arts on New Walk).
Artists take over Leicester for weekend of performances, exhibitions and installations: in pictures
Feb 27, 2022
Source
Leicestershire Live
Summary
Leicester became the canvas for a string of artists to perform over this weekend as part of the UK New Artists takeover.
Artists took to the city streets and were hosted at city venues where the public was invited to immerse themselves into and enjoy their work for free.
The city welcomed 75 artists from across the UK between Friday and today, coordinated by national charity UK New Artists (UKNA).
Many people attended the multiple performances held across the weekend while others happened upon them unsuspecting in the city centre.
If you were in the city over the weekend, you might have spotted artist, Kirsty Kerr's mini reconstruction signs.
The tiny artworks which shared words of resilience were dotted around the city.
Meanwhile a figure clad in a white soundproof suit turned heads in the street while many stopped to take pictures with them.
It was all part of the performance piece Silencer by Maja Zeco. She started at The Guildhall Museum and roamed the streets via the Cathedral, St Martin's Square and the cultural quarter.
Soundwalking the energy transition: will Aberdeen's clean energy ambitions damage its local community?
Jul 23, 2024
Source
Research for the World, The London School of Economics and Political Science
Summary
Aberdeen’s plans to move away from oil and gas towards clean energy have highlighted the difficulties in ensuring such transitions are equitable. Through a series of soundwalks, Gisa Weszkalnys, Rachel Grant and Maja Zećo explore how the city’s overlapping energy regimes are already impacting its citizens.
Article by James Hayes for Institution of Engineering and Technology with interview quotes. Occupational burnout is flaring up across disciplines, and at-risk engineers need to balance professional drive with personal wellbeing.
Is there a 'Strongman' like Trump in Scottish Politics?
Jan 30, 2025
Source
The Herald
Summary
The concept of 'The Strongman', and I’m not talking about men with bulging biceps, is playing at large on the global political stage but will we see its impact here in Scotland?
