In Ljubljana, Cibo created a new mural with the motif of packaging and food.

Pier Paolo Spinazzè or Cibo is an internationally recognized street artist who created a 250 m2 mural in Ljubljana in the first half of September 2023. The opening of the mural took place on September 15, 2023, at 6:00 p.m. next to the Šiška Cinema, and within the framework of the YAFE project – youth art for the earth, creative workshops with young people were also completed.

(Ljubljana – Slovenia, 19 September 2023) On September 10, 2023, three-day workshops for young people on the topic of environmental sustainability and street art as part of the YAFE project – youth art for the earth ended in Ljubljana. The workshops took place in Šiška from the beginning of September, and were organized by the IRDO institute in cooperation with JZ Mladi zmaji – ČMC Šiška and the Institute for Urban Issues (INURB). In cooperation with these partners and Kino Šiška, the Italian Institute for Culture in Slovenia and international partners from Serbia, France and Great Britain, a large mural was also created in Ljubljana in the first half of September 2023 – a mural on the subject of excessive use of packaging and healthy food, which was created by the internationally renowned street artist Pier Paolo Spinazzè or Cibo. The opening of the mural, which is on the building of the former municipality of Šiška, Trg prekomorskih brigad 1, Ljubljana (next to Cinema Šiška), was held as part of the Šiška HeyDay program on Friday, September 15, 2023 at 6 p.m. The Italian ambassador in Ljubljana, Mr. Carlo Campanile, was also present at the opening.

Carlo Campanile, Ambassador of Italy in Slovenia, said at the opening of the mural in Ljubljana: “It was an honour and a pleasure to participate in the opening day of Cibo’s mural in Šiška. I really hope that both Ljubljana residents and tourists will enjoy the painting. I strongly believe in the potential of these new forms of art expression in raising awareness among young generations about issues and topics such as access to food, the fight against wasted food, the fight against all forms of intolerance and discrimination, which are the fundamental messages of Cibo’s art.”

Street art is an excellent tool for communication and debate on current sustainability topics and for improving public spaces for the benefit of local communities. Cibo (Pier Paolo Spinazzè), has been transforming symbols of hate into culinary forms for over two decades. Under the pseudonym Cibo (“food”), the artist skillfully graffiti fruits, vegetables, and other Italian culinary delights over hate speech graffiti; one hateful message after another is turned into giant strawberries, pasta with tomatoes, or slices of Parmesan cheese. In Ljubljana, Cibo is showcasing a mural on the theme of ecological sustainability, emphasising the importance of recycling and repurposing vegetables and fruits. About the creation of his artwork in Ljubljana Cibo said:  “The mural comes from two concepts. The first has to do with healthy eating and the five colours of vegetables. The second concerns the use of plastic, which is used only once and then thrown away. Many times we don’t even think about it because we are not used to it. The mural will also act as an illusion of continuity, because in the end we are what we eat.”

The international project Yafe – youth art for the earth is co-created by partners from three countries (Slovenia, Serbia, France) with the aim of involving young people in articulating messages and co-creating works of art (murals) about social responsibility and environmental sustainability. Three-day workshops for young people on environmental sustainability and street art were therefore held from September 1 to 10 in the premises of the Public Institution Mladi Zmaji – Šiška Quarter Youth Center. The workshops were taught by M.Sc. Anita Hrast, director of IRDO – Institute for the Development of Social Responsibility, M.Sc. Živa Kavka Gobbo, president and professional manager of Focus, an association for sustainable development, and Fedja Šičarov, academic painter and street artist. Fedja Šičarov said about the workshops: “We presented young people with environmental protection topics and contemporary issues in society, related to discarded food and waste packaging, as well as various examples of engaged and socially critical street art. By making their own templates and adopting them, the participants were able to get to know the topic and gain insight into how to express their own observations and certain problems in society that they would like to address and change through art. Mainly by getting to know different techniques in the field of creating street art.”

Nina R. Orlić, head and coordinator of the ČMC Mladi zmaji Šiška center, said about the workshops on street art and sustainability: “At a time when young people are increasingly resigned to their fate and the fate of our planet, projects like YAFE are very important, as they give them a voice and hope that change is possible. Being heard is sometimes very difficult in times of a flood of information and opinions. We gave young people a voice and some of them took advantage of it.”

The YAFE project aims to improve the capacity to co-create engaging street art that promotes inclusion and environmental sustainability. The project is co-financed by the European Union through the Creative Europe program and the Republic of Slovenia – Ministry of Public Administration and Ministry of Culture. The partners of the YAFE project are: Nobulo and Urban Art Paris, France, Sklad B92, Serbia, IRDO, Institute for the Development of Social Responsibility, Slovenia.

Dr. Sandi Abram, who through the Institute for Urban Issues – INURB promotes the promotion of street art in Slovenia and is also the expert manager of the YAFE project in Slovenia at the invitation of the IRDO Institute, said at the opening of the mural in Ljubljana: “Street art represents a window through which we can understand contradictions of society and the political climate in a given environment. Ljubljana gained an insight into the form of expression of one of the more innovative street artists, who, in his expression, fights against hateful speech on the street. At the same time, he is receptive to creating murals on the topic of pressing social issues.”

As part of the two-year project, an international documentary film is also being produced about the course of workshops on the topic of street art and environmental sustainability, as well as the creation of murals in six cities across Europe. Adam Mulalić is co-creating this film in Ljubljana as part of the YAFE project. He said the following about the making of the film: “I’m glad that young people and society are facing topics that are relevant for the future, because I don’t dare to imagine a normal everyday life without it. The stepmotherly attitude of past generations has greatly changed the guidelines in the minds of young people, who had to develop quickly to become greener for a better tomorrow. Young people must therefore quickly adapt to the new guidelines of life, which previous generations could not provide them. The film is created after inciting the desire of young people for a better tomorrow. We hope that we will activate even more young people so that they will work in this field as unitedly and synergistically as possible.”

Creative workshops for young people, the production of a new mural and the continuation of the filming of the international documentary film YAFE – youth art for the earth will continue in the spring of 2024 in Maribor.

You could see the results of the project in Ljubljana as part of the Šiška HeyDay event on September 15 in Ljubljana. Following events were also organized:

More information about the artist Cibo and photos of his work can be found here: https://www.instagram.com/cibo.oooo/

More about the Šiška HeyDay program (& YAFE):

More information about the YAFE project:

 YAFE – Contact for Slovenia:

 

IRDO – Institute for the Development of Social Responsibility
(IRDO – Inštitut za razvoj družbene odgovornosti)
Cesta 13. julija 65A, 1261 LJUBLJANA-DOBRUNJE, Slovenia, EU
Phone: +386 (0)31 344 883
E-mail: info@irdo.si; Web page:  www.irdo.si

Photo: IRDO archive.

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