Gabriela Manda Seith

Gabriela Manda Seith is a curator, writer and art historian based in Sarajevo and Berlin. Her exhibitions, texts and research are dedicated to art that draws attention to the unseen, that protests, that inspires thought and action, and that brings about change, for example in the exhibition Up in Arms (Berlin, 2019). In her dissertation, she writes about the so-called “War Art” scene during the siege of Sarajevo 1992-1995 (the Free University of Berlin, advised by Prof. Dr. Wendy Shaw). This research focuses on the socio-political capacity of the art scene and contextualizes its international perception in the wake of globalization and revitalized Balkanization.

Her aim to participate in the Hestia residency in Belgrade grew out of her interest in artistic and activist responses to pollution of air, soil and water, which she addresses in the exhibition False Clouds (National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina, 10 September – 20 October 2022).  In Belgrade, she focused specifically on air pollution, one of the city’s biggest environmental problems. During her stay, Gabriela had the chance to interview artists, activists and researchers and to visit places related to air pollution to deepen her insight into regional as well as global implications of environmental pollution.