Moving around

During the siege, the continuation of normal life in the city, continuation of creativity, for all citizens of Sarajevo was as important as bread or medicine or water.

This segment in FAMA research period 1992-1996 contains the question "Could you describe a creation of yours?" and interviewees' answers. Sarajevans (in this case: interviewees) created and accepted this model in order to survive: "We were all innovators of our own methods of survival" – as put by one of the respondents.

Sources: FAMA Collection 1992-1996: Oral History, Survival Questionnaire, Sarajevo Life Magazine, archival video and photo collection.

SKIING

© FAMA Collection - Visual Archives 1992-1996 (Jelena Oksenfeld)

Enes Zlatar Bure, rock musician: ‘We skied through the streets of Sarajevo while the shells were falling around. People fleeing saw two guys carrying skis and thought we were from another world. But I wanted to make a video letter for my girlfriend who was in Sweden at the time, I wanted her to see how we lived, what we did. I was filming the skiing because it was something impossible then. Absolutely impossible. I projected my dreams, as I've been dreaming of going to the mountains to ski. But I couldn't, of course, for snipers were there. The video letter was silent, so I put some music in the background, it looked like a spot or a video postcard, a tourist one...’

GOING TO COLLEGE

© FAMA Collection - Visual Archives 1992-1996 (Jelena Oksenfeld)

Student: ‘When going to college to take my exams, as dolled up as I could, I would walk along the rear of whatever was there to protect us from sniper fire, although it was more for mental than actual protection. I could never be sure if I'd come back alive. At times I would take off my shoes and run across intersections.’

ŠEMSA

FAMA Collection - Visual Archives 1992-1996

Šemsa Mehmedović, economist, always smiling, dashing, dressed to the nines. Never showing fear, never running but moving around normally, despite those who, at every intersection, peered through the sniper scopes: 'I think I haven't gone out of my mind only because I worked so much, physically.'