Queer Art Academy

Project title: Queer Art Academy – Building Safe Artistic Futures in the Western Balkans

Allocated funds: 39,996.60 EUR

Queer Art Academy – Building Safe Artistic Futures in the Western Balkans is a project aimed at creating sustainable and safer professional conditions for LGBTIQ artists across the Western Balkans through the development of a regional model of cooperation, visibility, and inclusion through art. The project focuses on empowering emerging queer artists from Serbia, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro, while connecting independent queer artistic communities with public cultural institutions and professional networks.

The project is focused on strengthening the professional capacities of queer artists working in theatre, playwriting, visual arts, and dance, who often lack access to mentorship, production resources, and institutional support. The direct target groups are emerging LGBTIQ artists aged 20 to 40, while secondary target groups include cultural institutions, mentors, producers, and wider regional audiences. The final beneficiaries are queer artistic communities across the Western Balkans, cultural actors developing inclusive practices, and the broader public exposed to new narratives of equality, belonging, and solidarity through art.

The following activities will be implemented within the project:

• Five-Day Queer Art Academy – Participants will take part in interdisciplinary workshops, lectures, creative labs, and peer-learning sessions focused on artistic, production, and organisational skill development. The programme will address artistic development, safe and inclusive working environments, institutional collaboration, and regional networking, with the support of established mentors and professionals from the region.
• Mentorship Programme and Artistic Project Development – Following the Academy, participants will engage in individual and group mentorship sessions aimed at developing new artistic concepts in theatre, playwriting, visual arts, and dance. Mentors will provide professional guidance in project development, visibility, and engagement with the cultural sector.
• Regional Work-in-Progress Showcase and Networking Event – The project will conclude with a regional public presentation of artistic works and concepts organised in cooperation with cultural institutions and organisations from the region. The event will connect artists with curators, producers, festivals, and institutions, creating opportunities for future collaboration and production.
• Visibility Campaign and Regional Network Building – Through digital artist profiles, video portraits, media outreach, and online promotion, the project will increase the visibility of queer artists and queer art practices across the region. At the same time, a regional network of artists, mentors, and cultural institutions will be established as a foundation for long-term cooperation, exchange, and artistic mobility in the Western Balkans.