The focus of the 15th Biennale of Young Artists, co-curated by Sebastian Cichocki and Nada Prlja, is on the importance of the artistic practices in formation. This curatorial position is partly informed by the history of the Museum of Contemporary Art – Skopje, where the Biennale of Young Artists began in 1987, establishing an institutional platform for dialogue and experimentation in relation to the work of artists-in-formation. Focusing on process also implies an emphasis on research, experimentation, and dialogue with audiences, as well as on the social contexts that shape the ways in which artists act.

The 15th Biennale begins on the 29th October 2025, unfolding through a series of exhibitions and events, across a set of diverse venues in Skopje and beyond, leading up to its final phase in October 2026. Each of the Biennale’s events will serve as a platform for a new group of participants. The concept of this year’s edition of the Biennale moves away from the format of previous Biennales (centered around an exhibition at MoCA – Skopje and the awarding of prizes), and instead creates a dynamic platform for developing practices and works. Another new aspect of this year’s edition of the Biennale is its dispersed structure, with events taking place at various locations in Skopje as well as other cities, with the aim of creating artistic and cultural exhibition models that are connected to different social and urban contexts.

The 15th edition also revisits the structure of the Biennale’s Open Call. This time, the invitation is not limited by the age of its potential participants (formerly limited to under 35 year-olds), thereby taking into consideration artistic practices that may be newly established at any age, nor is it limited only to participants with formal education (professional artists). The  Open Call is also open to designers, architects, performance artists, writers, students, and others. This shift in the structure of the call reflects not only contemporary ways of working, but also echoes some of the Biennale’s initial impulses, which had similarly sought ways to expand the scope of formal art.

All interested applicants are hereby invited to submit a selection of realised works, as well as projects that are in their initial, sketch-like phase—works that reflect the very beginning of the creative process and are characteristic of early-stage artistic production. Those ‘early works’ could be drawings, models, public space actions, graffiti, interventions, performances, concrete poetry, short videos, radio-podcasts, etc. Works in more “conventional” formats, such as paintings and sculptures are also welcome. As the curators emphasise: “We are interested in the nascent phase of processes. ‘Early’ can be raw, unfinished, primary or even premature, but it can also be avant-garde, thought-provoking, and radically visionary in terms of concept and idea.”

In accordance with this Open Call, applicants are invited to submit their portfolios or links to websites and profiles (Instagram, etc.) featuring their work to mocaskopje.team@gmail.com, no later than 23.08.2025. If your work is conceived for a specific location (a particular street, public institution, etc.), please indicate this in your application.