MARIBOR IS THE FUTURE 038: Interview with Lekë Rezniqi / Pogovor z Lekëjem Rezniqijem

Kosovo artist Lekë Rezniqi has uncovered a hidden history of the Kosovo rescue of Jews during World War II through his performance Memories of a dining table at the Festival House of Tolerance. Among the rescuers was also his great-grandfather, and with one of the families he rescued, Rezniqis formed a particularly close relationship that has been preserved for four generations. This story moved the artist so much that he became the director of the association for Kosovo-Israeli friendship and began to discover the forgotten historical episodes. Among other activities of the association is his performance, which was first performed on the central square in Pristina. And again within the framework of the Festival House of Tolerance in GT22 and Ljubljana. When the visitor approaches the board with a picture of the dining table and a brief description of its diverse history, the artist starts his performance; simply by telling the incredible story of both families with a special glow in his eyes and a gentle smile on his mouth. More at: http://www.kosovaisrael.org/ Kosovski umetnik Lekë Rezniqi je v okviru Festivala Hiša strpnosti skozi performans Spomini jedilne mize opozoril na zamolčano zgodovino kosovskega reševanja Židov med drugo svetovno vojno. Med rešitelji je bil tudi njegov praded, z eno od rešenih družin pa so Rezniqijevi oblikovali še posebej tesen odnos, ki se ohranja že skozi štiri generacije. Ta zgodba je sogovornika tako ganila, da je postal direktor društva za kosovsko-izraelsko prijateljstvo in se lotil odkrivanja vsekakor spoštovanja vredne, a zamolčane zgodovinske epizode. Med drugim tudi skozi omenjeni performans, ki ga je prvič izvedel na osrednjem trgu v Prištini. Znova pa tudi v okviru Festivala Hiša strpnosti v GT22 in v Ljubljani. Ko se obiskovalec približa tabli, na kateri je fotografija jedilne mize in kratek opis njene pestre zgodovine, umetnik začne svoj performans; preprosto tako, da s posebnim žarom v očeh in rahlim nasmeškom na ustih pripoveduje neverjetno zgodbo obeh družin. Več na: http://www.kosovaisrael.org/