MOTTO: Creative. Alternative. Fantastic.
UNESCO Patronage of the Cultural Olympiad Sarajevo 2025
UNESCO is the official patron of the Cultural Olympiad Sarajevo 2025, organized by the Cultural Forum in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the International Festival Sarajevo Winter, in cooperation with cultural and artistic institutions from Bosnia and Herzegovina and around the world. The event will take place from June 21 to December 21, 2025.
In a decision addressed to Ms. Dubravka Bošnjak, Minister of Civil Affairs of BiH and President of the State Commission for Cooperation with UNESCO, it is stated:
“By promoting cultural cooperation among international artists and institutions, this initiative aligns with the mission of UNESCO — congratulations on that.”
On the occasion of Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO, granting patronage to this initiative, Ibrahim Spahić, President of the Cultural Forum in BiH and Director of the Sarajevo Winter Festival, stated:
“I am proud, as are artists around the world, that the importance of our ‘Art Manifesto’, published in 2021 during the First Online Cultural Olympiad, is being recognized.”
The Manifesto emphasizes the essential role of artistic creativity and collaboration, freedom of expression, commitment to education, science and the arts, and the importance of getting to know others and those who are different — their traditions and contemporary creativity.
The celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Sarajevo Winter Festival (SWF) will be marked by the Cultural Olympiad 2025. Over the next six months, outstanding artistic achievements will be presented in Bosnia and Herzegovina and around the world, aiming to contribute to peace, development, freedom, and mutual respect among all people.
The Cultural Olympiad program will be presented at a special press conference in Gorizia and Nova Gorica, the European Capitals of Culture for 2025. The event will feature a performance by musician and architecture student Ilan Huarta. The same cities will also host the XX BJCEM Biennale, organized by the association founded in Sarajevo during the X BJCEM Biennale in 2001.
The Cultural Olympiad will also be presented in Toruń, Poland, during the International Theatre Festival “Kontakt”, in the country presiding over the European Union at that time.
Simultaneously, on June 21, 2025, the Cultural Olympiad will open in Sarajevo and selected cities across all continents.
As part of the Olympiad, during August and September, the GRAD Festival will be held under the slogan: “The Heatwave of Art”, organized by SWF and the Cultural Forum in BiH.
In October 2025, the city of Konjic will host the international exhibition “Shelter” by the collective ARTNAUTS (USA), held in Tito’s bunker, a former Cold War military command center (D-0 ARK).
The theme of the Cultural Olympiad Sarajevo 2025 is a vision of the world for the next 40 years — and beyond — until the end of the 21st century. The artistic motto is: 40 PLUS.
Dear artists and friends, we look forward to your participation!
If you are unable to travel to Sarajevo, we invite you to present your works in your own city and make your participation in the Cultural Olympiad 2025 accessible to the global art community online. Send us a message and a video with the location and date of your performance, taking place between June 21 and December 21, 2025.
Together, we will create the most beautiful global art calendar, accessible to people all over the world.
Welcome to the Cultural Olympiad Sarajevo 2025.
Creative. Alternative. Fantastic.
Application materials and submission link: http://bit.ly/3Z1LbS6
Ibrahim Spahić
Art Director of the Cultural Olympiad Sarajevo 2025
Director of the International Festival “Sarajevo Winter Festival”
President of the Cultural Forum of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Contact: +387 62 031 594