DISCO SCHOOL: Reimagining the future of Murska Sobota
Have you ever wondered what the future of our cities would look like if children were in charge?
After an incredible and deeply inspiring two-year programme, the SpeculativeEdu team brought the project to a close with Disco School, a workshop designed to inspire the children and local community of the small town of Murska Sobota to move away from a nostalgic past and towards a new vision of the future.
The workshop, which took place in Murska Sobota, was led by Jimmy Loizeau, Matt Ward and Sara Božanić in cooperation with Primary School III Murska Sobota. With more than 98 children involved in the whole process, Disco School resulted in a playful exhibition, which was firstly on display at MIKK – Youth Club Murska Sobota, then moved on to a group exhibition entitled “My neighbourhood, my city”, which took place at the Saint-Pierre Church in Firminy, France, and is now set to open in Ljubljana on 16 December.
“We wanted to inspire the local community to share their dreams and ambitions with us, and to play with the idea of what they would do if they were in charge of the urban planning in the city.”
The Process: Designing a city with children
Renowned international and local creatives, musicians, and designers worked together with local children to explore new perspectives and think about a new form of city planning. Using speculative design practices as a participatory tool for local engagement and education, the aim was to stimulate children’s interest in community life and establish a link between them and city decision-makers.
RESEARCH
In the first phase of the project, the authors of the concept focused on exploring the context in which they are located. The research included interviews with the citizens, and mapping the city and locations that were recognized as important places of social encounters. Followed by a discussion with pupils of Elementary School III in Murska Sobota about the idea of what the city would look like if they were running it.
ARTWORKS
Inspired by the discussion about their city and under the guidance of teacher Mihaela Ružič, pupils of Elementary School III in Murska Sobota began working on various artworks centered around their hometown. A total of 21 poems were written about Murska Sobota, a city maquette was made with over 50 pieces of ceramics and over 10 linocut prints of the most striking buildings in the city designed by the famous architect Franc Novak.
SKETCHES & OBJECTS
During a three-day workshop led by designers Jimmy Loizeau, Matt Ward, and Sara Božanić, children combined storytelling, line drawing, and collages to develop ideas about a new shared vision of the future of Murska Sobota. A collection of stories, images, sketches, and plans were produced and then turned into 3D structures and models to help design the alternative city town plan.
MUSIC
Music has always played a big role in our society, both as a generator of social and political change, but also by shaping one’s sense of belonging and identity. During the workshop, two songs were produced using four of the poems written by pupils, and made into some kind of anthems of the future Murska Sobota, with the help of renowned local musicians kleemar and Big Pappa. The songs were recorded in a music studio with the children and then pressed into a vinyl entitled Vö Fajna!.
The Exhibition: From a place of nostalgia to a blueprint for endless possibilities
All the work was brought together and displayed in a playful and colourful exhibition meant to inspire visitors, big and small, to reimagine their city by asking critical questions about the future.
- September 11 – 22: Disco School exhibition in Murska Sobota
- October 15 – 29: “My neighbourhood, my city” at the Saint-Pierre Church in Firminy, France
- December 17 – 20: Final exhibition at the Institue for Transmedia Design in Ljubljana
Exhibition Artists
Concept artists: Jimmy Loizeau, Matt Ward, Mihaela Ružič, Sara Božanić
Artwork artists: Dunja Ana Colombo, Neli Čep, Lucian Dujanovič, Gaja Krčmar, Tija Murgelj, Lara Copot, Aneja Gomboc, Betina Pucko, Urša Šlibar, Ana Žvokelj, Zarja Garcia, Hana Marinič, Taja Horvat, Žana Martinec, Marsel Meleš, Tine Šalamon, Mia Topovšek, Nina Bohnec, Maj Balažic, Katja Egić, Lučka Gostenčnik, Lan Graabar, Žiga Grah, Gaja Horvat, Kiara Horvat, Tjaša Horvat, Vanja Horvat, Lana Tia Kuhar, Žan Luk, Luka Pojbič, Lan Šalamun, Alina Šarkezi, Julija Šinko, Samanta Šipoš, Luka Škaper – Meško, Alex Vukan, Mai Borovič, Bor Patrik Burjan, Maruša Durič, Jure Garcia, Luka Valentin Grabar, Iztok Kikec, Kiara Kolbl, Luna Kuhar, Neža Küplen, Vid Mlinarič, Neli Režonja, Zoja Šantavec, Lara Šebjan, Aleksander Škafar, Keanu Švenda, Kim Kuzmič, Enei Lucu, Tian Mesarič, Ajda Oček, Katarina Petrović, Lado Ratkai, Mia Topovšek, Kio Červek, Lina Felkar, Lem Forjanič, Erik Gomboc, Tajda Gostenčnik, Jaša Grčar, Val Hajdenkumer, Filip Horvat Mohar, Aljaž Kokol Povh, Izabela Zala Kranfogel, Jure Kumin, Matic Kranfogel, Jakob Cigüt, Maruša Durič, Blaž Tobias, Dej Duričić, Eva Kuronja, Aleks Horvat, Luka Mesarič, Maša Kos, Matic Brunec, Tine Šalamon, Alex Gutalj, Naja Gjerek, Taja Marič, Urška Obal, Zana Zrim, Tia Lülik, Lara Kuzmič, Eva Kumin, Eva Marija Fičer, Dina Ismajlović, Hana Ismajlović, Zara Sabotin, Ula Sabotin, Miha Šebjan, Vasja Pertoci, Taras Kikec, Katjuša Pertoci
Exhibition design: Jimmy Loizeau, Matt Ward, Sara Božanić, Mihaela Ružič, Žan Bedinek, Ana Nicol Ropoša, Mateja Filipović-Sandalj, Tomaž Županec, Petar Božanić, Oleg Šuran, Sebastijan Škraban
Composing: Matej Končan aka kleemar, Big Pappa, Izabela Zala Kranfogel, Maruša Durič, Matic Kranfogel, Jakob Cigüt
Media Design: Oleg Šuran
Content Design: Mateja Filipović-Sandalj
Supervision: Vida Lukač, Matej Fišer, Sonja Čerpnjak, Daniel Ulčar, Boris Bodanec, Maja Lačen Škrbič, Ivica Mitrović, Janez Balažic
Co-production: The event is organized by the Institute of Transmedia Design Murska Sobota, with the support of the Center for Creativity, MIKK – Youth and Cultural Club Murska Sobota, the Municipality of Murska Sobota, Elementary School III, the Institute for Culture, Tourism and Sport Murska Sobota, the Municipality of Ljubljana, Academia Maribor, Arts Academy Split and Goldsmiths, University of London, as part of the international project SpeculativeEdu.
The Disco School educational project is co-produced with the Center for Creativity at MAO and is part of the Platform Center for Creativity’s partner network, it is co-financed by the European Union’s Regional Development Fund and the Republic of Slovenia, by City Municipality Ljubljana and by City Municipality Murska Sobota.
The honorary patron of the project is City Municipality Murska Sobota.
