Together with our partner Maska, we have chosen "Rehearsing freedom" as the overall theme of the IETM Ljubljana meeting. This intriguing theme has emerged by asking ourselves some important, basic questions - about freedom. 

Ljubljana was the site of our explorations, both conceptual and real. It is a small and lively Central European city with a vivid artistic and cultural scene, small streets, green parks, Medieval architecture and a cute old centre on the banks of Ljubljanica river. It was just made for a relaxed and fruitful gathering of artists and cultural operators from all over the world. 

During the IETM meeting in Ljubljana the IETM Ljubljana Festival took place, presenting a fine selection of Slovene contemporary performances, specially recommended by the three Slovene selectors: Sasa Savel, Blaz Lukan and Rok Vevar. There was also numerous other performances presented in the frame of the IETM Ljubljana OFF Festival programme. They were interesting, different, on the edge… and definitely worth seeing! 

A special part of the IETM Ljubljana was the Itineraries of Slovene Contemporary Art, where interesting artists and arts organizations took you on a ride through Ljubljana as they see it, sharing their artistic and aesthetic views, their thoughts on contemporary arts in Slovenia, and showing their artistic and creative spaces, public or very private, open to the public or very intimate. Participants gained deep insight into the creativity of Slovene contemporary art in Ljubljana. 

Before the official start of the IETM Meeting in Ljubljana, a pre-meeting trip to Maribor was organised. Maribor had been selected to be the European Cultural Capital in the year 2012, with preparations already on their way to organise this event. During the pre-meeting trip, participants were able to meet the organisers of the Cultural Capital, see Maribor’s most interesting artistic venues, meet the artists who live and create in this city and try the famous white wines of the Stajerska region. 

IETM, Bunker and other IETM members from Slovenia collaborated to co-organise IETM’s Spring Plenary Meeting which was held in Ljubljana, Slovenia, from 15th – 18th May 2008.

The IETM meeting in Ljubljana was a part of the official programme of the Slovene presidency to the European Union. It was the first IETM meeting in Slovenia since 1992. Sixteen years: how has the contemporary arts sector changed? Twenty years since the fall of the Berlin Wall: what was the changes to the conditions in which artists exercise their right to free expression… in the East? In the West? In the World?

Image in banner: © Urška Boljkovac