Archipelagos of Resistance Sarajevo

For her series Archipelagos of Resistance, Johanna Diehl traveled to Sarajevo several times between 2021 and 2024 and photographed places and spaces in which exhibitions, theater productions, film festivals and concerts took place in the 1990s. During the Bosnian war and the siege of the city, many were used as media centers such as the Hotel Holiday Inn or the BHRT Building (Bosnia & Herzegovina Radio & Television Building). Despite life-threatening circumstances, cultural life took place in these "archipelagos of resistance" scattered across Sarajevo. They enabled the world to witness life in the besieged city. Her pictures illustrate the power and importance of cultural work, especially in war zones and times of crisis. With this series and her previous work, she investigates the cultural identity of contemporary Europe. A book that sheds an entirely different light on the question of the life-affirming, vital importance of culture and art in times of budget cuts! The project was created as part of an Ifa-touring exhibition.