For full information on the projects in the official programme, please visit go2025.eu.

Highlights of the year

8 February From Station to Station. The opening ceremony of the European Capital of Culture will symbolically unite the two cities with a procession from Gorizia to Nova Gorica railway stations.

1–9 May March for Europe. A simultaneous march in several European cities divided by national borders and projects that turn border crossings into art.

26–28 September Tastes without Borders. One of the most popular food and wine festivals expands to the Slovenian side! Gourmet delights seasoned with art.

1–3 December Enlighted Closing Ceremony. With light installations we festively decorate Nova Gorica and Gorizia - closing the European Capital of Culture on This Merry Day of Culture.

WAR AND PEACE

7 February Dobrovo, 15 March Štanjel, 30 April Gorizia: Mušič - Landscapes of the Body. A unique insight into the life of Zoran Mušič, from the earliest images of his childhood, through his terrifying memories of the concentration camp, to his last self-portraits.

9 May EPIC. Opening of the European Platform for Interpretation of the 20th Century, a permanent exhibition of testimonies and memories of people from the Goriška region.

9 May Memory Ambulance & Archive Brigades. The premiere of the feature-length documentary by Anja Medved, which brings together the memories of those who experienced the Second World War through the eyes of children.

16 August Javorca, 22 August Sabotin, 29 August Cerje: Art against Guns. This project explores the deep traces of the First World War through three musical-theatrical performances.

CREATION OF THE NEW

Dodecalogy 1972–1983. Premieres 1972: 10 January, SNG Nova Gorica; 1973: 1 February, SNG Nova Gorica; 1974: 22 March SMG Ljubljana; 1975: 30 April hosting of the Ukrainian Theatre in SNG Nova Gorica; 1976: 24 May, Stadium Nova Gorica; 1977: 28 June, SNG Nova Gorica; 1978: 7 July, hosting of the Hungarian Theatre from Timișoara in Nova Gorica; 1979: 30 August, Krušče; 1980: 26 September, SMG Ljubljana; 1981: 25 October, hosting of the theatre from Novi Sad in Nova Gorica; 1982: 28 November, SNG Nova Gorica; 1983: 19 December, SNG Nova Gorica. Transgenerational documentary fiction by director Tomi Janežič about Nova Gorica as a city connected to other cities in surprising ways.

from spring 2025 Basaglia – the Fatal Clash. We will travel around Slovenia on the blue horse, open a cinema in the Basaglia Park in Gorizia – and write letters. A tribute to the intellectual who de-institutionalised the treatment of madness.

24 May 2025 Shining Invisible City. What would Nova Gorica look like if the original design by architect Edvard Ravnikar had not been thwarted by political and ideological changes? The project maps this shadowy but shining invisible city.   

31 May–30 June 2025 Biennale of Young Artists from Europe and the Mediterranean. Held every two years since 1985 in the Mediterranean region, this biennial focuses on artists and creators under the age of 35.

17 July 2025 Meeting Point. Piano virtuoso Alexander Gadjiev presents a unique open-air concert under the Solkan bridges.

SMUGGLERS

from January 2025 PostMobility. A series of media art interventions, productions and research on the re-use and rethinking of transport and mobility in both physical and digital space.

from January 2025 Complexity Festival. A cycle of conversations with leading writers and thinkers of our time: Didier Eribon, Aleksandar Hemon, Miljenko Jergović, Slavoj Žižek are just some of the guests and interlocutors. 

from 12 March 2025 Museum on the Border. Presentation of a guidebook along the route connecting the museum collections of Nova Gorica Train Station, Pristava, the military watchtower in Vrtojba and the Miren Cemetery. We invite you to a journey along the border, between memory and oblivion, division, resourcefulness and connectedness.

from April 2025 Think Tank Train. Literary residencies and events addressing the relations between centre and periphery, rural and urban, man and nature.

12 June 2024 Artists out of residence. Barbara Pia Jenič's cross-cultural sensory project interweaves multi-sensory atmospheres and testimonies of those who have arrived and those who are still on the way.

3 July 2025 Borderless Body. MN Dance Company will discover the limits of the body and the thrill of transcending its existential limits in the magnificent setting of the Solkan quarry.

from August 2025 Your Border is My Border. A series of plays and performances highlighting the plight of contemporary migrants and calling for a united Europe.

VERY GREEN

from January 2025 Seed Library. The conservation of biotic biodiversity is based on the free exchange of seeds. The France Bevk Public Library in Nova Gorica promotes the protection and conservation of home-grown seeds and plant species.

9 February 2025 Food of the Future Lab. Under the watchful eye of Jurij Krpan, situations related to the concept of the future of food will be created through workshops and art projects in the fields of precision gardening and remote sensing.

from March 2025 The Other Radio. An internet-based sound and curatorial project by the Robida Collective dedicated to exploring the conceptual and physical spaces of the margins.

16 April 2025 No Time to Waste. A series of workshops for event and festival organisers working towards ecological event delivery. A space for sharing best practice within the zero waste philosophy.

24 April 2025 Bat Symphony. An intimate spatial sound experience at Rihemberk Castle - listen to bats and other nocturnal sounds played at a human audible frequency.

23 June 2025 Green Points. A series of lectures and workshops on green regeneration - the project is led by architect Dr. Saša Dobričić.

from July 2025 ISOLABS. Marko Peljhan is preparing a series of situations exploring the complex interplay of art, science, technology, language and environment from the source to the mouth of the Soča River.

4 July 2025 Atlas of Forgotten Orchards. Opening of the Kojsko orchard, the largest gene bank of old fruit varieties in the region. The botanical and artistic project is signed by film director and director of photography Gregor Božič.