Introduction

In contemporary art in Slovenia Urbanaria institutionalised a category tied to the creation of a site specific and conceptual exhibition outside the realms of conventional exhibition sites. It introduced a different status of exhibition, a different role of a curator and a different position of the artist. In Urbanaria the city appeared in two roles: it represented the content linking the exhibitions and it was the place in which the work of the artists was displayed.

In essence the Urbanaria exhibition was envisaged as a complex process and was divided into two parts. In that process the organisation, selection, discussions, lectures, the realisation and presentation of artworks were all equally important. These procedures and the methods of the creation of an exhibitions have been made transparent throughout the process and were presented to the public.

The Urbanaria - Part One had primarily a character of a research. Its conclusion was a conceptual exhibition in the National and University Library, Ljubljana of all submitted proposals entitled "Sketches/Documents of the Production Process", accompanied by a catalogue.

Urbanaria - Part Two comprised thirteen separate projects, installations, actions and events, presented in the second catalogue. Although the projects were independent and dispersed in time and place, they formed an integral process. The common characteristic of these projects was that they exploited the effectiveness of advertising, design and the mass media. They approached the everyday life and upon expiry they most often did not leave behind material remains. Their power was based on the non-material capacity to nest in the cultural consciousness of society and the individual.