A Better History / Eine bessere Geschichte

In Skopje, a government plan costing several hundred million euros has created a brand new ancient city center; a project called “Skopje 2014”. Some thirty government buildings and museums, as well as countless monuments in the classic style have been erected in the Macedonian capital, in an attempt to put Skopje on a par with Rome and Athens. In some cases, existing socialist structures were incorporated into the new builds.
A city looks for a future in history – Macedonia has been inventing itself as a nation with historical status based on a model of antiquity that never existed in that form. 
Will it work? Will we buy that (hi)story?
In A Better History, present-day Skopje becomes an archaeological dig. We can follow in real time how history is made, how historical singularities are manufactured via mimicry, and how then the boundary between truth and falsification becomes blurred. A multifaceted puzzle about multi-ethnic states and the phantasm of national purity is created that is not only about Europe’s origins, but also about the question of who belongs: Who is in and who is out, and according to what law. 
In collaboration with the composer Daniel Dominguez Teruel, a 24-page book of music entitled Bigger than Life was created, which will be included with the book. The photo series compiled by Nina and Adnan Softić comprises 56 images and montages.