Kosovo’s National Gallery Presents “She Who Starts the Song…”

A New Exhibition at the National Gallery of Kosovo Explores Gendered Traditions and Intergenerational Narratives

The National Gallery of Kosovo announces the inaugural exhibition “She Who Starts the Song…” featuring 23 artists from the Balkans. This thought-provoking exhibition invites viewers to engage with intergenerational narratives through photography, moving images, and sonic practices, highlighting the resilience of traditions and their ongoing subversion.

The exhibition’s inspiration stems directly from tepsijanje, a traditional musical practice originating in Kosovo, where women sing alongside the rhythmic spinning of copper pans. This unique form embodies passed-down gestures, bridging generations and honoring ancestral knowledge. Inspired by filmmaker Trinh T. Minh-ha’s work “Woman, Native, Other,” the exhibition centers on a nameless female singer whose stories unfold across time.

“If you have the patience to listen,” she will take delight in relating it to you,” Minh-ha wrote about the diseuse, a storyteller whose truth unfolds through time. This concept resonates throughout the works in “She Who Starts the Song…,” inviting audiences to engage with the ancestral tales shared by grandmothers.

The exhibition opens with a section showcasing artists like Huda Takriti, Kristina Benjocki, Joanna Piotrowska, Lebohang Kganye and Angela Blažanović, each grappling with fragmented memories and the difficulty of tracing familial lineages. Like the spinning of a tepsija, their slow, deliberate gestures revive ancestral tales at risk of being lost.

As the exhibition progresses, it transitions to a dynamic exploration of artistic voices challenging traditional expectations. Ivana Bašić’s lung-like glass sculptures speak to the breath that shaped them, while Saodat Ismailova’s amulets whisper songs spanning time. Clarissa Tossin’s installation resurrects pre-Columbian Mayan wind instruments through 3D-printed replicas held in museum collections, bringing Indigenous knowledge systems back to life. Lala Raščić and Semâ Bekirović examine the tepsija as a cultural object, seeking ways to “spin out” of traditional constraints and oppressive structures.

The exhibition culminates in a powerful exploration of rebellion and liberation. From Željka Gita Blakšić’s depiction of relentless factory labor to Stanislava Pinchuk’s installation exploring war-ravaged landscapes, these pieces delve into the enduring figure of the “hag,” an independent woman often vilified for her agency.

Through the exhibition’s captivating blend of artistic voices and thoughtful curation, “She Who Starts the Song…” offers a poignant reflection on resilience, subversion, and the enduring power of stories passed down through generations.

Participating Artists: Ivana Basić, Kristina Benjocki, Semâ Bekirović, Angela Blažanović, Željka Gita Blakšić, Vera Hadzhiyska, Majlinda Hoxha, Astrit Ismaili, Saodat Ismailova, Šejla Kamerić, Lebohang Kganye, Ana Likar, Glorija Lizde, Maria Mavropoulou, Klodiana Millona & Endi Tupja, Joanna Piotrowska, Stanislava Pinchuk, Iva Radivojević, Lala Raščić, Simon Shiroka, Huda Takriti, and Clarissa Tossin.