KUIKO KOIKO has shown to its owners that when one door closes, another door opens. Set up at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the characteristic name of the brand is composed of abbreviations of the words for “tiny houses” (kućice) and “cubes” (kockice), which were their first products.
Plagued by nationalist-political narratives and rabble-rousing rhetoric, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is facing its worst political crisis since the end of the 1992-1995 conflict. However, street art in the country’s capital points to the possibility of reconciliation and peaceful coexistence in a society still polarized by the wounds of war.
A young architect from Sarajevo, Emina Arapčić (32), has been experimenting and working with concrete for a long time. ON.design emerged in 2016 as a project to bring together and showcase her work to a wider audience.
Redesigning and restoring old furniture - that's what Lejla Selimović, a law graduate, does for a living. The whole idea of the “Wood Surgery” workshop, according to this craftswoman, revolves around the process of recognizing the potential and beauty of discarded furniture, having the ability to aesthetically breathe new life into it, and finally, finding people who are willing to trust in her. For eight years now, Lejla has been turning dilapidated old furniture into modern pieces that are attractive to customers. She began this work, as she says, spontaneously and impulsively, out of pure love.
Elvir Hambašić has turned his interest in wood carving and woodcraft into a unique business, working alongside his children and his wife, Sanida. This family from Donji Ulišnjak, near Maglaj, is one of the few who are committed to preserving culture and tradition by producing traditional Bosnian furniture.
One would think that art and post-war wounds were not so connected. Aida Šehović, a Bosnian-born artist based in New York, disagreed and, for the past 15 years, has proven that art can help in post-conflict recovery.