The personal essay is enjoying a revival, not least due to the immense success of Didier Eribon’s autobiographical work, Return to Reims. Perhaps its resonance today stems from its classification as a „crisis genre,“ perfectly aligning with our ongoing state of constant crisis. We could envision our project as a Return to Bosnia, taking inspiration from Eribon’s title. Due to the historical reasons outlined earlier, such a return would almost certainly confront a crisis.
Intimate reflection is the lifeblood of the personal essay, which also grants extraordinary creative freedom. A narrative can begin from a single, vividly recalled moment in the past: from an object, a scent, a photograph, a familiar person’s habit, a distinctive feature, a landscape—and so much more.
Concurrently, the project encourages experiments with literary and artistic estrangement. Before certain material can genuinely find its voice, it may need to be trimmed, reshaped, or reframed.
[Cover picture: Emina Haye, 2022.]