Five Years of Shared Curiosity

Five years ago, in September 2021, Cukrarna opened its doors, bringing contemporary art and a rich variety of ideas and perspectives into its spaces. Since then, we have collaborated with artists and curators from Slovenia and around the world to produce more than 56 exhibitions and projects and welcome 253,279 visitors. Alongside exhibitions, Cukrarna has hosted performances, festivals, theatre productions, concerts, talks, discussions, guided tours, workshops, and published 23 exhibition catalogues and seven issues of CUKR magazine.

Large-scale thematic exhibitions featuring Slovenian artists form a key part of the programme. Over the past five years, we have produced four such exhibitions, bringing together more than 300 works of art. While Cukrarna’s basement exhibition space is dedicated to video art, the Parterre Gallery explores individual artists’ approaches and practices through its “one space, one artist, one project” format, with more than 26 solo exhibitions to date. This period also saw the launch of PERFORMATIVA, a series dedicated to performance art and related practices, now awating its sixth edition in November. The programme has grown through collaborations with cultural organisations and producers, including the Mladinsko Theatre, SNG Drama Ljubljana, Radio Slovenija, the Academy of Music in Ljubljana and numerous non-governmental arts and cultural organisations across Slovenia. Since 2023, Erzen Shkololli to expanded Cukrarna’s international collaborations as curator-at-large. A  collaboration like that brings a wide range of artistic practices into our spaces and strengthen Cukrarna’s role as a meeting point for the wider arts community, beyond national borders. The Indigo Festival has become a regular festival in Cukrarna’s autumn programme. Other festivals that take place in Cukrarna include Avdiofestival, SONICA, Sound Explicit and TO)pot, extending the programme into sound, music and other contemporary artistic practices.

A love of art can be nurtured from an early age. Our guided tours and school programmes introduce young people to art in ways that spark curiosity and encourage exploration. The second season of Klub Cukrastičnih [Sugar-tastic Club], a series of monthly workshops where children discover contemporary art through creative activities, will begin for the second time this fall. Cukrarna is also home to SCCA-Ljubljana’s World of Art School for Curatorial Practices and Critical Writing, which nurtures a new generation of curators and art critics.

Five years may seem a short time, but looking back can help us imagine what lies ahead. As society changes, so do the questions artists explore in their work and the ways we engage with contemporary art. Cukrarna’s programme is therefore always a work in progress. Since opening its doors, the programme of Cukrarna has continued to evolve, exploring new approaches and bringing together different artistic practices to offer fresh perspectives on the times we live in—through both the artworks themselves and the conversations they inspire.

Above all, we would like to thank you, our visitors. You bring our programme to life. Your responses, conversations and perspectives help us understand how art resonates with people and the connections it creates. Thank you for spending time with us and sharing your thoughts.

Thank you for being part of our story.