Bosnian artists revive disused script

A group of Bosnian artists and designers are attempting to resurrect an ancient script, highlighting common cultural links between different groups in the country.

The project, entitled “I write to you in Bosančica”, looks to revive a script used in Medieval times in the area that is now Bosnia and Herzegovina. The first stage of the project consisted of examining handwritten documents and using them to reconstruct the characters of the long-disused script. Art and design students from Bosnia and Herzegovina (from both the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republika Srpska), Croatia and Montenegro then submitted artworks based on the script, answering a call for contest entries by the Association of Applied Artists and Designers of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The artworks were first exhibited in the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo, at the end of November, and will be featured in a series of exhibitions throughout the region in 2016.

“I write to you in Bosančica” originated as part of “Dialogue for the future”, a project financed by the United Nations in Bosnia and Herzegovina to promote dialogue and mutual understanding between the different communities in the country.

“Saving Bosančica from general oblivion is a duty we have towards our country because it’s a clear sign of a common cultural past for all of us, especially these days when disputes about our languages and alphabets are used to divide us,” said Amra Zulfikarpašić, a professor at the Art Academy of Sarajevo and the coordinator of the project.

Source: BIRN