Army warehouse to be turned into a creative design center
Macedonian Defense Ministry leased an Army warehouse with 1.450 square meters in the center of the capital Skopje to the Public Room art, design and debate organization. On Friday, Defense Minister Zoran Jolevski, together with Culture Minister Elizabeta Kanceska - Milevska, gave the keys to the warehouse to Public Room representative Aleksandar Velinovski, who will turn it into a design center.
"These young designers and innovators will develop products that will be offered to Macedonian companies for production. I expect that this will become a center of innovation and creativity in Macedonia, a place to experiment, create new ideas, solution prototypes, and test them before the public, before they find their way to the market", Minister Kanceska - Milevska said. The Culture Ministry has already approved financial support for 150 projects that are part of creative industries and design.
Minister Jolevski said that the warehouse will be adapted into a design center by September, and will include workshops for metal and wood, modelling and other creative arts.
"The goal is to develop a strong connection between designers and the business sector, so that the design is not dependent on donations from foundations. The business sector will upgrade its performance through the work of young designers, who, in turn, will become independent in their work", Velinovski added. He invited designers from Macedonia and the region to send their prototypes to the new center, which will also work with financial support from a European Union program.