EKO 8 Intro

EKO 8, International Triennial of Art and Environment / A Letter to the Future
Former MTT factory
Maribor / Melje
May 21 − 18 July 2021

In 2021, the Maribor Art Gallery will relaunch the EKO, International Triennial of Art and Environment, in its eighth edition (21 May – 18 July 2021). The EKO Triennial, founded in 1980 (in then Yugoslavia), is one of the oldest events of its kind. The renewed triennial, entering the scene after a multi-year hiatus, brings new points of departure and new goals. The EKO Triennial will thus be dedicated to the visual arts, which explore and comment on the many changes at global and local levels that affect the environments in which we live in and on which we depend. With the move of the triennial outside the gallery, we established its new headquarters in a new location with the aim of reactivating urban areas. Partnerships with various city institutions, associations and actors are of great importance for the relaunch of the triennial, and together with the EKO 8 team form the central creative force of the event.

The 8th edition of the EKO 8 Triennial – with the title A Letter to the Future – is a call to start thinking beyond the present and to connect generations and spread knowledge with the help of contemporary art. We are interested in which observations of the wider (artistic) community contribute to a better understanding of what unites us and what connects us. The triennial will present projects by around 30 international artists. The artistic director of EKO 8 is Alessandro Vincentelli, an independent curator from the UK. EKO 8 will take place in the former textile factory Hutter / MTT in the industrial zone Melje in Maribor.