KotorArt
International festival
Thursday, July 17
Kotor Creative Hub, 9.30 p.m.
OPEN DISCUSSION
THE CITY AS AN ARCHIVE OF MEMORY AND CHANGE
Moderator: MILICA NIKOLIĆ, expert in the field of culture and gender equality
Participants:
DRAGAN MARKOVINA, Historian, Writer, Publicist, and Columnist
VLADIMIR ARSENIJEVIĆ, Writer and President of the KROKODIL Association
BARBARA OBRADOVIĆ PAJIĆ, andragogue
Program partners
THE CITY – MEMORY, IDENTITY, FUTURE
Every city carries its own stories – etched in stone, preserved in memory, and revealed in everyday encounters. Street by street, square by square, the city grows alongside the people who inhabit it. It remembers, forgets, dreams, and is constantly changing.
Philosophers’ Square, the KotorArt debate program, transforms public squares into contemporary agoras – vibrant forums of ideas that confront pressing contemporary challenges while engaging with the legacies of the past. As a meeting point for thinkers, activists, philosophers, sociologists, and artists, Philosophers’ Square encourages critical reflection, fosters a culture of dialogue, and strengthens social cohesion, mutual understanding, and tolerance.
The 15th edition of the Philosophers’ Square invites us to reflect on the city – not merely as a physical space, but as a living entity that senses, remembers, and seeks its path. Inspired by the ideas of Bogdan Bogdanović, we explore the question of what makes a city a city: its identity, its historical layers, and its future visions. Through a two-day debate program, we invite you to reflect with us: How do cities shape us and how can we, in turn, shape cities that remember, connect, and endure?
Welcome to a space where dialogue becomes the foundation of new visions.
Milica Nikolić, a Montenegrin expert in culture and gender equality, holds a master’s degree in the History of Culture and Historical Anthropology, and is currently pursuing a PhD in Anthropology. She has published extensively in both national and international humanities journals. Her research focuses on identity, the relationship between the individual and the community, heritage interpretation, feminism, social cohesion, interculturalism, multiculturalism, and human rights. She brings over 15 years of experience in public administration, including more than five years as Secretary-General of Montenegro’s National Commission for UNESCO. She has served as a gender equality consultant for UNDP, coordinated numerous cultural policy initiatives, and led the process for the inscription of the Boka Navy on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. As a Teaching Associate at the University of Donja Gorica, Milica Nikolić integrates her rich experience in culture, human rights, and gender studies into the anthropology curriculum. She also contributed to the implementation of a UNESCO-led interagency project on social cohesion during its mission in Montenegro.
Dragan Markovina earned his BA, MA, and PhD in History from the University of Zagreb. He has published approximately fifteen scholarly articles and previously served as an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Split. He is the author of numerous books, including: Between Red and Black: Split and Mostar in the Culture of Memory (Zagreb-Sarajevo, 2014), The Silence of the Defeated City: Essays, Stories, Columns (Mostar, 2015), A History of the Defeated (Zagreb, 2015 – Sarajevo, 2016), Yugoslavism After Everything (Belgrade, 2015), The Age of Counter-Revolution (Zagreb, 2017), The Lonely Children of the South (Split, 2018), Yugoslavia in Croatia (1918–2018): From Euphoria to Taboo (Zagreb, 2018), Lebanon on the Neretva: Culture of Memory, Culture of Oblivion (Mostar, 2019), Neum, Casablanca (Sarajevo, 2021), History, Politics, Popular Culture (Zagreb, 2022), The Partisans Are Passing Through (Belgrade, 2022), 14 February 1945 (Sarajevo, 2023), The Marshal at Poljud (Zagreb, 2024), Engineered Oblivion (Belgrade, 2024), Our Heroines (Sarajevo, 2025). He has received the Mirko Kovač and Zdravko Grebo literary awards. His work has been featured in academic anthologies such as The Stigma of Totalitarianism and The Political Use of the Past. Dragan Markovina is a regular columnist for the online portal Telegram (Croatia), the Sarajevo daily Oslobođenje (Bosnia and Herzegovina), and and the Belgrade-based portals Peščanik and Velike Priče.
Vladimir Arsenijević is an award-winning Serbian author, known for works such as In the Hold (1994), Anđela (1997), Mexico – A War Diary (2000), Išmail (illustrated with Aleksandar Zograf, 2004), Predator (2008), Yugolab (2009), Minute – Around the World in 60 Seconds (with illustrator Valentina Broštean, 2011), Flight (2013), This Is Not a Happy Place (2014), You and Me, Anđela (remake of the novel Anđela, 2016), Toward the Border (2018), and Ghosts (2024). He co-wrote the screenplay for the feature film Asymmetry (2019) with directors Maša Nešković and Staša Bajac. His 2022 play The Conspirators, co-authored with Igor Štiks, has been performed throughout the region. His latest screenplay, And Who Are We?, directed by Miša Terzić and inspired by a case of peer violence, is currently in post-production. Arsenijević’s works have been translated into over twenty languages. He has received the NIN Award (1994), the Sterija Award (1996), and the National Library of Serbia’s Most-Read Book Award (2011). A former editor at VBZ Publishing, he is founder of Rende Publishing House and the audiobook platform Reflektor. He currently serves as President and Creative Director of the Belgrade-based cultural association KROKODIL.
Barbara Pajić Obradović has served since 2006 as Senior Advisor for Protocol, Citizen Engagement, and International Associations in the Cabinet of the Mayor of Kotor. Her work is focused on protocols and communication with domestic and international partners, engagement with citizens and local initiatives, collaboration with international city networks and associations, and organizing cultural and public events. She holds a degree in Andragogy from the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Belgrade. Prior to her current role, she worked at the Grabovac Elderly Care Home in Risan, where she was directly involved in elder care programs and the promotion of humane and dignified approaches to aging. Deeply involved in the cultural and social life of Kotor, she is passionately dedicated to preserving the city’s heritage and identity.
