For the first time, the works by leading names in national art such as Uroš Predić and Paja Jovanović, the greats of European art El Greco, Élisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun and Marc Chagall, as well as contemporary artists Mladen Miljanović, Vladan Jeremić, Rene Redle, Safet Zec and Taus Makhacheva will be presented in this year’s European Capital of Culture.

Migrations and the positive consequences of people moving, the richness of diversity and its impact on art, are the themes of the new programme arch ‘Migrations’, which started on 1st february and with which Novi Sad, as the European Capital of Culture, continues with the cultural events in 2022. In the next 45 days, Serbian Athens will present the migrational identity of Novi Sad, Serbia, and Europe through more than 300 events. Around 130 artists will present themselves through various art genres, 90 of which are from different European countries.

Kaunas officially started its year as European Capital of Culture 2022 with a 5-day celebration. The slogan “From temporary to contemporary” is an invitation to join Kaunas in creating change and the Contemporary myth of Kaunas Trilogy compares the city with a body and is based on the Beast metaphor, which connects all of the city’s different stories. As we can read in the first pages of the official programme guide “That Beast is a bit noble, a bit of a ruler of the underworld, part child, part jester, part warrior, part guardian, part airplane, ship, even automobile. It, like the city, is created from living and inanimate parts. It moves, changes, breathes, and never stops, because it is eternal!”.

One month before the official launch of Esch2022, in the former Ariston cinema in Esch-Alzette, the Esch2022 team presented the REMIX Opening project, the official opening event of the European Capital of Culture. Residents and visitors will be invited to the centre of Esch and Esch-Belval to be part of an extraordinary participatory event which will inspire visitors with its immersive multimedia elements. The participants’ creative energy will be at the heart of this first chapter of a region in transition.