The recipients of the Župančič Awards 2022, the highest recognitions of the City of Ljubljana for outstanding creations in the field of art, which are lastingly enriching the cultural treasure chest of Ljubljana and are resounding with their uniqueness even in the broader international space, are known.

The Župančič Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022 will go to academic sculptor and university professor Matjaž Počivavšek, and the Two-Year Creativity Awards (2020‒2022) will go to actress, poet, writer, playwright and university professor Saša Pavček, film and theatre creator Tijana Zinajić and musician, composer and music producer Tomaž Grom.

Župančič Lifetime Achievement Award

With his work, academic sculptor Matjaž Počivavšek makes an important contribution to the presentation and reputation of Ljubljana at home and abroad, at the same time, he constantly visibly co-shapes the public urban space, fills it with creations while sensitizing the public with his works of art. His creative process takes place in an in-depth artistic self-reflection. When creating public sculptures, the artist thoughtfully asks how to set up something that is public and immovable for a while, (which) passes between intimate studio work and enters the public space by introducing the hedonistic creative esprit as well as the intimacy of his studio. When designing for the city, he considers the dimensions and manner of placement in the dialogue between the public and the personal, thus humanizing the public space and allowing the rushing crowd to stop and feel the beneficial touch with the artwork.

Župančič Two-Year Creativity Awards

With her comprehensive artistic work, Saša Pavček significantly co-shapes the capital's cultural landscape and Slovenian art in general. In the Slovenian National Theatre Drama Ljubljana, she created roles in the plays The Scorpion, My Husband and #girlsandhalfgirls, which show a wide interpretive range and a penetrating insight into the depths of the human soul. With the collection of poems Stopped Time, the artist remembers her deceased ancestors and friends and, in a dialogue with them, stops the relentless »rushing, pushing, proving, bleeding«. When she stops in time, the boundless horizons of the past and the future unfold before her.

Tijana Zinajić, a film, television and theatre director, with her solo film debut Bitch, a derogatory term for a woman, created a film that is popular without being populist, funny without underestimating the viewer, and provocative without forgetting to be humane. The existential distress of a young woman is presented in the film with explosive energy and a sense of humour, with the right amount of provocation and optimism. The film also features a diverse selection of film music, which draws a map of the modern urban sound of our space.

Tomaž Grom is a double bass player, improviser, composer, sound designer and producer, founder and artistic director of the Sploh Institute for art production and publishing, which has a unique role in Ljubljana and Slovenia in the field of contemporary improvised music, he supports the development and implementation of improvisation practices, contemporary composition and sound and technological experiment. In the last two years, he has participated in many music ensembles, written original music or designed sound for various art projects, and also created a film debut I Can't Wait for You to Come.