Performance and Documentation of Artistic Practice – Exhibition by Sandra Sterle The exhibition by Sandra Sterle, titled *Inventing the Past, Imagining the Future* (*(Iz)mišljanje prošlosti, (za)mišljanje budućnosti*), held at the Rector’s Palace in Zadar, brings together photographs, objects, documents, and archival material discovered among the belongings of the artist’s grandfather, alongside a screening of the film *Reviving the Grandfather* (*Oživjeti djeda*).The project explores family memory, the archive, and the ways in which the past is continuously shaped through personal experiences, storytelling, and interpretation. At the heart of the work lies the story of the artist’s grandfather, Ante Jelenković—born in Zadar in 1910 and a member of the Albanian minority group known as the Zadar Arbanasi.Drawing upon his personal legacy, family narratives, and available archival records, Sandra Sterle investigates the complex relationship between documented history, individual memory, and fiction. The grandfather’s stories are more than mere accounts of past events.As they are passed down through time, they evolve, filtered through personal emotions, experiences, and new interpretations.This very process of transformation serves as the starting point for an artistic inquiry that questions the extent to which our understanding of the past is rooted in facts, versus how much it is shaped by the ways in which we remember, narrate, and imagine. The exhibition and the film connect an intimate family history with broader questions of identity, belonging, and collective memory.In this context, the archive is not viewed merely as a collection of preserved documents and artifacts, but as a dynamic space where the past is constantly reconstructed, reinterpreted, and brought to life within the present.Personal memories thus become part of a shared cultural heritage. The project builds upon the long-standing artistic practice of Sandra Sterle, who explores the relationships between identity, memory, storytelling, and media representation through film, photography, installation, spatial interventions, and performance.In this context, the archive is neither a place for the definitive storage of the past nor a space reserved exclusively for historians and heritage custodians.On the contrary, it becomes an active space for the creation of new meanings—a place where artworks, documents, and stories continue to live on through new readings and interpretations. The exhibition is curated by Olivia Nițiș. The exhibition has been documented as part of the IDIUP project.

At the heart of the work lies the story of the artist’s grandfather, Ante Jelenković—born in Zadar in 1910 and a member of the Albanian minority group known as the Zadar Arbanasi. Drawing upon his personal legacy, family narratives, and available archival records, Sandra Sterle investigates the complex relationship between documented history, individual memory, and fiction.

The grandfather’s stories are more than mere accounts of past events. As they are passed down through time, they evolve, filtered through personal emotions, experiences, and new interpretations. This very process of transformation serves as the starting point for an artistic inquiry that questions the extent to which our understanding of the past is rooted in facts, versus how much it is shaped by the ways in which we remember, narrate, and imagine.

The exhibition and the film connect an intimate family history with broader questions of identity, belonging, and collective memory. In this context, the archive is not viewed merely as a collection of preserved documents and artifacts, but as a dynamic space where the past is constantly reconstructed, reinterpreted, and brought to life within the present. Personal memories thus become part of a shared cultural heritage.

The project builds upon the long-standing artistic practice of Sandra Sterle, who explores the relationships between identity, memory, storytelling, and media representation through film, photography, installation, spatial interventions, and performance. In this context, the archive is neither a place for the definitive storage of the past nor a space reserved exclusively for historians and heritage custodians. On the contrary, it becomes an active space for the creation of new meanings—a place where artworks, documents, and stories continue to live on through new readings and interpretations.

The exhibition is curated by Olivia Nițiș.

The exhibition has been documented as part of the IDIUP project.

The views and opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the European Commission can be held responsible for them.