Petrit Halilaj’s work is closely connected to the question of origins. His personal history is marked by his family’s exile from the war in Kosovo, a memory that the artist uses as material to explore notions of national and cultural identity by confronting his personal experience with a collective memory. He circumvents reality with the help of stuffed animals, earth, or rubble in order to formulate a political critique of conflicts. His installations are also the breeding ground for reflections on memory, freedom, and identity. As his work begins from research on trauma, the fragmentary character of his installations provides a possible response to the violence suffered by Kosovo and its population.

Born in 1986 in Kostërrc, Petrit Halilaj trained at the Brera Academy in Milan. He lives and works in Berlin.