Autostrada Biennale in Prizren, Kosovo, is delighted to announce the appointment of Erzen Shkololli as the curator of its fifth edition, which will take place from July 5 to October 5, 2025.
Autostrada Biennale was established in 2014 with the mission to employ contemporary art as a means to strengthen local communities and stimulate creativity for a more inclusive and sustainable future.
Autostrada cofounders Leutrim Fishekqiu, Vatra Abrashi, and Barış Karamuço state: “We are excited to welcome Erzen Shkololli as the curator for the fifth edition of the Autostrada Biennale. Shkololli’s diverse expertise and local and international collaborations reflect a way of working that aligns seamlessly with the biennale’s ethos. Additionally, as the first Kosovar curator of the biennale, our collaboration will continue our work of engaging art as a powerful force for positive change and community well-being.”
Erzen Shkololli (1976) is an artist and curator. He currently serves as curator-at-large at Cukrarna (Ljubljana). Shkololli has successfully led several art institutions, including Albania’s National Gallery of Art (2018–2022) and Kosovo’s National Gallery of Art (2011–2015). Under his leadership, both institutions underwent significant transformations. In addition to his institutional roles, Shkololli has served as the commissioner of Kosovo’s inaugural pavilion in the Venice Biennale (2013) and has independently curated international exhibitions, including Edi Hila: Painter of Transformation (2018), a collaborative project between the National Gallery of Arts, Tirana, the Museum of Modern Art, Warsaw, and Kontakt Collection, Vienna; We Live Upon a Star (2016), the second edition of the Hannah Ryggen Triennial, showcased in Ørland and the Nordenfjeldske Kunstindustrimuseum, Trondheim; The World Won’t Listen (2007) at the Art Workshop Lazareti, Dubrovnik; History Started Playing with My Life (2007) at Digital Art Lab (DAL), Holon, Israel; and Reappearance (2004) at the Kosovo Museum, Prishtina. Shkololli served as a curatorial advisor of documenta 14. He was awarded the DAAD Artists-in-Berlin fellowship (2008/2009) and the Premio Michetti by Fondazione Michetti (2001). In 2013, he cofounded EXIT Contemporary Art Institute in Peja, Kosovo. Shkololli’s artwork has been exhibited in museums such as the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, Centre Pompidou, Paris, Tate Modern, London, and MUMOK, Vienna.
Erzen Shkololli states: “I am honored by this prestigious appointment. As the first Kosovar invited to curate the Autostrada Biennale in Prizren, I am humbled by the opportunity to collaborate with one of the most significant platforms of contemporary art in Kosovo and the region. Undertaking this project is both an exciting challenge and a profound responsibility that I meet with enthusiasm and ambition. I eagerly look forward to working closely with the exceptional team at the biennale to bring together artists in Kosovo and to give life to their projects. I extend my heartfelt appreciation to the biennale’s founders, Leutrim Fishekqiu, Vatra Abrashi, and Barış Karamuço, for this unique opportunity.”
As the only contemporary art institution in Prizren, Autostrada Biennale functions as both an international contemporary art exhibition that has taken place every two years since 2017 and as Autostrada Hangar, an education, production, and exhibition space in the former German KFOR military base (today, the Innovation and Training Park). With the latter, the platform is able to engage art production as a sustainable form of learning and exchange that addresses the needs of the communities. Autostrada Biennale has received generous support and established partnerships with Allianz Foundation, Ministry of Culture in Kosovo, Municipalities of Prizren and Prishtina, Foundation for Art Initiatives, US Embassy in Prishtina, ITP Prizren and many others.
Previous curators of the Autostrada Biennale
2017: Manray Hsu
2019: Giacinto Di Pietrantonio
2021 and 2023: Joanna Warsza and Övül Ö. Durmuşoğlu