Jana Konstantinova (born 1987) is an architect with studies in architecture and urbanism, based in Lausanne. She graduated on Architecture faculty of Skopje at the university Ss. Cyril and Methodius (Macedonia), where she obtained her master diploma. 

She is continuing her academic involvement with her Ph.D. studies at École

Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL). Her doctoral thesis is focusing on methodological overview of the cultural infrastructure in three city case studies: Skopje, Sarajevo and Belgrade.The thesis is under supervision of Prof. Nicola Bragieri (Architect) and the co-director Luca Pattaroni (Urban Sociology). 
She took involvement in several international exhibitions and venues such as "Critical Archive Revealed" in Kino Kultura (MK), "Sarajevo Now" at Venice Architectural Biennale (Italy), "Directed by the City" Macedonian Architectural Biennale (MK), "Everyday Sublime" Thessaloniki International Biennale (Greece) and "Findings" Lisbon international triennale (Portugal). Her essays are published in revue Tracés(Lausanne), Domus (Italy) and Arhi.tek (Skopje). 
Despite her portfolio dedicated to various research and design projects she took part in, she is also the co-founder of Exhibit - a NGO for urban research based in Skopje, Macedonia. 

Coming from a low income, developing country, I experienced first-hand the issues surrounding the crisis of urbanisation characterised with social, political, and ecological background, driving me to proactively seek solutions in my profession. My goal was to be accepted at a renowned academic institution, such as EPFL for the reason that with my innovative research I will become a stronger practitioner and contribute to the underprivileged global communities that suffer from social and cultural austerity, as a form affecting contemporary societal issues.

The long term objectives are to create a Geneva based architectural and urbanism practice organisation of students, academics, architects and practitioners spirited with new global discourse to developed alternative models of housing, mobility, production, and interaction grounded in the pursuit of social and environmental justice, diversity, and equality in the developing world while examining the future of humanities. Exploiting the already established international scenery of supranational, business and institutional organizations, through a new cosmopolite approach, it brings an added value to Geneva’s creative layer through specific international research, enabling architecture towards creativity, diversity and culture. 

Critical assessment of the cultural infrastructure in the (post) socialist spaces: Skopje, Belgrade, and Sarajevo (1953-2017) - (Thesis in Progress)

 

 

This dissertation aims to gradually understand the development, meaning and significance of the cultural infrastructure in the case studies: the city of Skopje, Belgrade, and Sarajevo. For the Yugoslav state, culture was fundamental common good which yield vivid cultural scene in the proposed cities.  Within this paradigm, architecture played essential role in creating the cultural milieu of the three proposed cities.

 

The exercise will consequently investigate the complex spatial configuration (including the buildings dedicated to art, culture) where Yugoslav culture represented itself in the proposed three periods (1953 – 1974; 1974 – 1989; 1989 – 2017). This will include understanding how certain aspects including unity, Heterogeneity, Traces-Heritage, Modern Form, Democratic Model, Elite Model stimulated the quality of the built fabric. 

 

The aims of the research are threefold. Firstly, by mapping the key buildings from which the city cultural infrastructure is formed to identify the factors who are important in this spatial system. With that, to comprehend how the spatial configuration is influenced by ideological and political forces and vice versa. Secondly, to reflect how artist and architects in Yugoslavia contributed the cultural life of the community and thirdly to investigate architecture not only as object – artefact, but also it is role, significance and potential as spatiological unit. 

 

Through the primary sets of data – printing press from the cultural scene of the cities, and the secondary assortment of data-visual materials (photography, architectural drawings, comics etc.) the exercise will be conducted. The interviews with the protagonist (architects, artists, cultural workers and politicians), are aiming to better understand the intertwining of culture, space and politics.

 

It aims filling the epistemological gap in the academic discourse, exemplifying the city of Skopje, Belgrade, Sarajevo not only as an isolated case studies, but as well understanding in broad spectrum how cultural, societal, political systems are producing, shaping, and consuming the city cultural infrastructure.