(5) żks (Jewish Sports Club) Scouts – Makkabi Gets Back in the Game The axis of this project was the non-existent figure of a fan of Makkabi, a soccer team that once existed in Krakow. “Makkabi Krakow was founded in 1909 and functioned in the inter-war period. Makkabi’s main rival was the Jewish Jutrzenka Krakow team, and the matches between the two teams were called a ‘holy war’ long before this term was used for the matches between the Cracovia and Wisła Krakow teams.” Source: Wikipedia. The project aimed to resurrect the memory of this man, an impossible figure from today’s perspective, through a range of subtle activities scattered through the space of the city. On 10 June 2011 Makkabi and its fans did really return to Krakow. They appeared unexpected and unannounced, and remained elusive till the end of the festival. The project was intriguing and compelling. Ongoing samizdat was distributed and published daily on the Internet, video clips uncovered consecutive fragments of history, its new significance. The ŻKS Scouts left the intrigued viewers in the dark. Word has it that they will be back…
This project was singled out by Jenny Holzer, admired by journalists, and unanimously chosen by the competition jury.
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