Arts, Culture, and Heritage as Drivers of Change
PROSPER Art Tour App
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PROSPER Art Tour app is a digital explorer app that reveals site-specific contemporary artworks placed within historic landscapes. Starting in the Old Town of Ohrid, the app invites users to discover art through walking routes, stories, and interactive maps, creating new dialogues between contemporary creativity and cultural heritage while encouraging sustainable exploration of place.
North Macedonia
Regional
Ohrid (North Macedonia)
Evia Island (Greece)
Evia Island (Greece)
It addresses urban-rural linkages
It involves other types of transformations (soft investment)
Yes
2025-10-01
Yes
Creative Europe
No
No
Organisation
PROSPER Art Tour is a digital cultural platform that reveals contemporary artworks embedded within historic and natural landscapes, inviting audiences to explore cultural heritage through artistic and sustainable experiences. Developed within the PROSPER project, the initiative resulted in an application, a performative audiowalk that connects art, heritage, and environmental awareness through location-based storytelling.
The platform allows visitors to discover site-specific artworks created in dialogue with local landscapes through curated walking routes supported by multimedia narratives including sound, video, text, and photography. Rather than presenting a traditional sightseeing guide, the app encourages users to move through places slowly and attentively, experiencing the landscape through artistic perspectives.
Currently implemented in Ohrid (North Macedonia) and Northern Evia (Greece), the platform offers an alternative model of cultural tourism that connects contemporary creativity with historic environments. The experience is open and accessible, allowing both visitors and local communities to engage with contemporary art in public space and to explore cultural landscapes at their own pace.
By combining artistic practice, heritage interpretation, and digital technology, the project demonstrates how culture can support more sustainable relationships between people and place. The platform promotes walking-based exploration, raises awareness about environmental and cultural contexts, and creates meaningful encounters between audiences, landscapes, and contemporary art.
Designed as a scalable and replicable model, the platform can be adapted to other historic towns and cultural landscapes. In the long term, it aims to expand to additional locations, strengthening cultural exchange and offering new ways for communities and visitors to experience heritage through contemporary artistic perspectives.
The platform allows visitors to discover site-specific artworks created in dialogue with local landscapes through curated walking routes supported by multimedia narratives including sound, video, text, and photography. Rather than presenting a traditional sightseeing guide, the app encourages users to move through places slowly and attentively, experiencing the landscape through artistic perspectives.
Currently implemented in Ohrid (North Macedonia) and Northern Evia (Greece), the platform offers an alternative model of cultural tourism that connects contemporary creativity with historic environments. The experience is open and accessible, allowing both visitors and local communities to engage with contemporary art in public space and to explore cultural landscapes at their own pace.
By combining artistic practice, heritage interpretation, and digital technology, the project demonstrates how culture can support more sustainable relationships between people and place. The platform promotes walking-based exploration, raises awareness about environmental and cultural contexts, and creates meaningful encounters between audiences, landscapes, and contemporary art.
Designed as a scalable and replicable model, the platform can be adapted to other historic towns and cultural landscapes. In the long term, it aims to expand to additional locations, strengthening cultural exchange and offering new ways for communities and visitors to experience heritage through contemporary artistic perspectives.
The project emerged within PROSPER – Prototypes for Sustainable Residencies in Europe’s Peripheries, a collaboration between cultural organisations from four countries exploring new models for artistic creation and cultural engagement in peripheral regions.
Two month-long international artistic residencies were organised in Ohrid (North Macedonia) and Northern Evia (Greece), bringing together 16 artists from different countries and disciplines. During their stay, the artists immersed themselves in the cultural, historical, and ecological context of the locations, developing site-specific artworks responding to the landscapes and local narratives.
The works were first presented through public one-day festivals, where audiences encountered contemporary art directly within the streets and landscapes of the two locations. While these temporary events created strong engagement, the partners sought a way to make the artistic experience accessible beyond the limited timeframe of the festivals.
This led to the development of the Prosper Art Tour App, transforming the festival experience into a digital performative audiowalk. The platform brings together the artworks and artistic perspectives in a multimedia format combining audio storytelling, video, text, photography, and interactive tools.
The project was implemented through collaboration between artists, cultural organisations, and a dedicated software developer who designed the digital platform. Ad Libitum (Skopje) participated in the development of the application as an associated partner, contributing from a creative, technical, and expert perspective, particularly in shaping the artistic dramaturgy of the audiowalk and the conceptual framework connecting contemporary art with cultural landscapes.
Two month-long international artistic residencies were organised in Ohrid (North Macedonia) and Northern Evia (Greece), bringing together 16 artists from different countries and disciplines. During their stay, the artists immersed themselves in the cultural, historical, and ecological context of the locations, developing site-specific artworks responding to the landscapes and local narratives.
The works were first presented through public one-day festivals, where audiences encountered contemporary art directly within the streets and landscapes of the two locations. While these temporary events created strong engagement, the partners sought a way to make the artistic experience accessible beyond the limited timeframe of the festivals.
This led to the development of the Prosper Art Tour App, transforming the festival experience into a digital performative audiowalk. The platform brings together the artworks and artistic perspectives in a multimedia format combining audio storytelling, video, text, photography, and interactive tools.
The project was implemented through collaboration between artists, cultural organisations, and a dedicated software developer who designed the digital platform. Ad Libitum (Skopje) participated in the development of the application as an associated partner, contributing from a creative, technical, and expert perspective, particularly in shaping the artistic dramaturgy of the audiowalk and the conceptual framework connecting contemporary art with cultural landscapes.
Cultural Landscapes
Sustainable Cultural Tourism
Digital Cultural Platforms
Art and Heritage Integration
Participatory Cultural Experiences
The Prosper Art Tour App addresses environmental, cultural, and social challenges linked to the growing pressures of tourism on fragile cultural landscapes. Historic towns and natural environments such as Ohrid (North Macedonia) and Northern Evia (Greece) increasingly face the impacts of short-term tourism that prioritises rapid consumption of attractions rather than meaningful engagement with place.
The project proposes an alternative model by encouraging slow, walking-based exploration of landscapes through contemporary artistic perspectives. Through the Prosper Art Tour App, visitors discover site-specific artworks embedded within historic and natural environments and are invited to explore the landscape at their own pace.
Sustainability is also embedded in the project’s low-impact digital approach. Instead of creating new physical infrastructure or permanent installations, the platform activates existing landscapes through digital storytelling, combining audio, video, text, and visual materials. In this way, the project extends the life and accessibility of artworks created during the artistic residencies while minimising environmental impact.
By connecting contemporary art, cultural heritage, and sustainable tourism practices, the project raises awareness of environmental and cultural challenges related to tourism and promotes more responsible visitor behaviour.
The Prosper Art Tour App also supports long-term cultural sustainability, strengthening the relationship between artists, local landscapes, and communities. As a digital and adaptable model, it can be replicated in other historic towns and cultural landscapes, demonstrating how artistic practice and digital innovation can contribute to more sustainable ways of experiencing heritage and place.
The project proposes an alternative model by encouraging slow, walking-based exploration of landscapes through contemporary artistic perspectives. Through the Prosper Art Tour App, visitors discover site-specific artworks embedded within historic and natural environments and are invited to explore the landscape at their own pace.
Sustainability is also embedded in the project’s low-impact digital approach. Instead of creating new physical infrastructure or permanent installations, the platform activates existing landscapes through digital storytelling, combining audio, video, text, and visual materials. In this way, the project extends the life and accessibility of artworks created during the artistic residencies while minimising environmental impact.
By connecting contemporary art, cultural heritage, and sustainable tourism practices, the project raises awareness of environmental and cultural challenges related to tourism and promotes more responsible visitor behaviour.
The Prosper Art Tour App also supports long-term cultural sustainability, strengthening the relationship between artists, local landscapes, and communities. As a digital and adaptable model, it can be replicated in other historic towns and cultural landscapes, demonstrating how artistic practice and digital innovation can contribute to more sustainable ways of experiencing heritage and place.
The Prosper Art Tour App contributes to making everyday environments more meaningful and inspiring by revealing contemporary artworks created in direct dialogue with the landscapes where people live and move. During the PROSPER residencies in Ohrid and Northern Evia, artists developed works inspired by the character, history, and everyday life of these locations, bringing contemporary artistic perspectives into historic streets, lakesides, and natural surroundings.
The artworks respond directly to the environment: some introduce contemporary visual elements into public spaces, others reveal everyday perspectives of the landscape from the homes of local residents, while another artistic approach translates the textures of historic architecture into sculptural forms created from imprints of walls and buildings. Other works reflect poetically on local ecological realities, connecting artistic imagination with the environmental identity of the place.
Through the Prosper Art Tour App, these works are transformed into a performative audiowalk that allows visitors to encounter them while walking through the landscapes that inspired them. In this way, the town and its surroundings become an open-air cultural experience where contemporary creativity and heritage coexist.
The app adds a digital cultural layer to these environments, ensuring that the artworks remain accessible long after the residency events have ended. Residents and visitors can rediscover familiar places through artistic perspectives, while remote audiences can also experience the works online.
By revealing artistic interpretations of landscapes and everyday environments, the project strengthens people’s sense of belonging and care for place. It demonstrates an exemplary aesthetic approach in which contemporary art, heritage landscapes, and digital storytelling work together to enrich how people perceive and experience the environments around them.
The artworks respond directly to the environment: some introduce contemporary visual elements into public spaces, others reveal everyday perspectives of the landscape from the homes of local residents, while another artistic approach translates the textures of historic architecture into sculptural forms created from imprints of walls and buildings. Other works reflect poetically on local ecological realities, connecting artistic imagination with the environmental identity of the place.
Through the Prosper Art Tour App, these works are transformed into a performative audiowalk that allows visitors to encounter them while walking through the landscapes that inspired them. In this way, the town and its surroundings become an open-air cultural experience where contemporary creativity and heritage coexist.
The app adds a digital cultural layer to these environments, ensuring that the artworks remain accessible long after the residency events have ended. Residents and visitors can rediscover familiar places through artistic perspectives, while remote audiences can also experience the works online.
By revealing artistic interpretations of landscapes and everyday environments, the project strengthens people’s sense of belonging and care for place. It demonstrates an exemplary aesthetic approach in which contemporary art, heritage landscapes, and digital storytelling work together to enrich how people perceive and experience the environments around them.
The Prosper Art Tour App promotes inclusion by making contemporary art and cultural experiences accessible to a broad audience in public space. Instead of being confined to traditional cultural institutions, the artworks can be discovered while walking through the landscapes where people live and visit, allowing both residents and visitors to encounter contemporary art in their everyday environments.
Accessibility is further strengthened through the free digital platform, which allows anyone with a smartphone to access the performative audiowalk. Participants can follow the route at their own pace and choose their own entry points, making the experience flexible and adaptable to different visitors. At the same time, the digital format allows the artworks to be explored remotely, opening the experience to audiences who are not physically present in the locations.
The project also reflects inclusive perspectives in its artistic approach. Several artworks are inspired by the everyday experiences of local residents and their relationship with the surrounding landscape. By bringing these perspectives into the artistic narrative, the project connects contemporary art with the lived realities of the communities where it takes place.
Accessibility is further strengthened through the free digital platform, which allows anyone with a smartphone to access the performative audiowalk. Participants can follow the route at their own pace and choose their own entry points, making the experience flexible and adaptable to different visitors. At the same time, the digital format allows the artworks to be explored remotely, opening the experience to audiences who are not physically present in the locations.
The project also reflects inclusive perspectives in its artistic approach. Several artworks are inspired by the everyday experiences of local residents and their relationship with the surrounding landscape. By bringing these perspectives into the artistic narrative, the project connects contemporary art with the lived realities of the communities where it takes place.
The Prosper Art Tour App was developed through a participatory artistic process that involved local communities, artists, and cultural practitioners in the locations where the project took place. Participation was central to the artistic residencies organised within the PROSPER project, where international artists spent extended periods working in Ohrid and Northern Evia, engaging directly with the local cultural and environmental context.
During the residencies, the visiting artists collaborated with local artists and cultural practitioners, exchanging knowledge and artistic approaches. This dialogue resulted in collaborative outcomes, including a collective mural created together with local artists, symbolically representing the encounter between local and international perspectives.
Local communities were further involved through creative workshops organised for residents and visitors, led by local artists and craftspeople. These workshops introduced participants to locally rooted practices such as filigree craftsmanship, mosaic-making, and the exploration of local micro-plants, connecting contemporary artistic creation with local cultural heritage and ecological knowledge.
The project also invites active participation through the Prosper Art Tour App itself. Visitors experience the artworks while walking through the landscape, becoming participants in a performative exploration of the place. The routes intentionally highlight lesser-known locations rather than the most visited tourist sites, encouraging visitors to engage with the town from alternative perspectives while complementing the work of local guides.
During the residencies, the visiting artists collaborated with local artists and cultural practitioners, exchanging knowledge and artistic approaches. This dialogue resulted in collaborative outcomes, including a collective mural created together with local artists, symbolically representing the encounter between local and international perspectives.
Local communities were further involved through creative workshops organised for residents and visitors, led by local artists and craftspeople. These workshops introduced participants to locally rooted practices such as filigree craftsmanship, mosaic-making, and the exploration of local micro-plants, connecting contemporary artistic creation with local cultural heritage and ecological knowledge.
The project also invites active participation through the Prosper Art Tour App itself. Visitors experience the artworks while walking through the landscape, becoming participants in a performative exploration of the place. The routes intentionally highlight lesser-known locations rather than the most visited tourist sites, encouraging visitors to engage with the town from alternative perspectives while complementing the work of local guides.
The Prosper Art Tour App was developed through cooperation between stakeholders operating at local, national, and European levels. The project emerged within the PROSPER Creative Europe project, which brought together cultural organisations from different European countries to explore sustainable artistic practices in peripheral regions.
At the European level, the partnership between Peripetija Production, Eho Animato, and Ad Libitum enabled the exchange of artistic and organisational knowledge and the development of an international residency programme. Within this framework, Peripetija Production and Eho Animato coordinated the artistic residencies and supported the creation of the artistic materials that later formed the content of the digital audiowalk.
At the organisational level, Ad Libitum played a key role in shaping the digital platform, developing the structure of the Prosper Art Tour App and designing the performative dramaturgy through which the artworks could be experienced within the landscape.
At the local level, the civil society organisation LDA Struga contributed its knowledge of the local ecological and cultural context of Lake Ohrid. The organisation supported the dissemination of the app among visitors and local stakeholders and integrates the walk within some of its cultural and educational activities related to the Ohrid region.
This cooperation across levels allowed the project to combine international artistic perspectives with local knowledge and community engagement. The result is a cultural model that connects European cultural collaboration with the realities of local landscapes and communities, demonstrating how multilevel cooperation can support sustainable cultural initiatives.
At the European level, the partnership between Peripetija Production, Eho Animato, and Ad Libitum enabled the exchange of artistic and organisational knowledge and the development of an international residency programme. Within this framework, Peripetija Production and Eho Animato coordinated the artistic residencies and supported the creation of the artistic materials that later formed the content of the digital audiowalk.
At the organisational level, Ad Libitum played a key role in shaping the digital platform, developing the structure of the Prosper Art Tour App and designing the performative dramaturgy through which the artworks could be experienced within the landscape.
At the local level, the civil society organisation LDA Struga contributed its knowledge of the local ecological and cultural context of Lake Ohrid. The organisation supported the dissemination of the app among visitors and local stakeholders and integrates the walk within some of its cultural and educational activities related to the Ohrid region.
This cooperation across levels allowed the project to combine international artistic perspectives with local knowledge and community engagement. The result is a cultural model that connects European cultural collaboration with the realities of local landscapes and communities, demonstrating how multilevel cooperation can support sustainable cultural initiatives.
The Prosper Art Tour App was developed through a transdisciplinary collaboration bringing together knowledge from several fields, including contemporary arts, digital technologies, cultural heritage interpretation, environmental awareness, and cultural tourism.
At the centre of the project were the artistic residencies, where artists working across different disciplines—such as visual arts, photography, performance, and multimedia—developed works inspired by the cultural and natural landscapes of Ohrid and Northern Evia. These artistic perspectives formed the creative foundation of the project.
The artworks were then translated into a digital performative audiowalk, developed through collaboration with a software developer and structured by Ad Libitum, which designed the technical framework and dramaturgy of the digital platform. This integration of digital technology allowed the artworks to become part of a location-based cultural experience accessible through a mobile application.
Environmental knowledge and local expertise also contributed to the project through the involvement of LDA Struga, which brought perspectives related to the ecology of Lake Ohrid and sustainable engagement with the landscape. In addition, local artists and craftspeople shared traditional knowledge through workshops focused on practices such as filigree, mosaic, and local plant knowledge.
By combining artistic creation, digital innovation, environmental awareness, cultural heritage, and local knowledge, the project demonstrates how transdisciplinary collaboration can create new ways of experiencing landscapes and understanding the relationship between people, culture, and environment.
At the centre of the project were the artistic residencies, where artists working across different disciplines—such as visual arts, photography, performance, and multimedia—developed works inspired by the cultural and natural landscapes of Ohrid and Northern Evia. These artistic perspectives formed the creative foundation of the project.
The artworks were then translated into a digital performative audiowalk, developed through collaboration with a software developer and structured by Ad Libitum, which designed the technical framework and dramaturgy of the digital platform. This integration of digital technology allowed the artworks to become part of a location-based cultural experience accessible through a mobile application.
Environmental knowledge and local expertise also contributed to the project through the involvement of LDA Struga, which brought perspectives related to the ecology of Lake Ohrid and sustainable engagement with the landscape. In addition, local artists and craftspeople shared traditional knowledge through workshops focused on practices such as filigree, mosaic, and local plant knowledge.
By combining artistic creation, digital innovation, environmental awareness, cultural heritage, and local knowledge, the project demonstrates how transdisciplinary collaboration can create new ways of experiencing landscapes and understanding the relationship between people, culture, and environment.
The Prosper Art Tour App was initially developed within the PROSPER Creative Europe project, which supported the artistic residencies, the creation of the artworks, and the development of the digital platform. The project is therefore rooted in a European cultural cooperation framework that enabled the initial investment in artistic production and technological development.
The application itself is free to access, as its primary aim is to provide open cultural access to contemporary artworks embedded in cultural landscapes. Rather than relying on direct user payments, the project operates through a cultural partnership model, combining public cultural funding, collaboration between partner organisations, and integration with local cultural and tourism ecosystems.
The partner organisations involved in the project continue to support the platform through their cultural activities, dissemination efforts, and artistic collaborations. Local stakeholders such as cultural organisations and tourism actors benefit from the app as an additional cultural offer that enriches the visitor experience.
In the longer term, the model is designed to be scalable and adaptable. The digital platform can be expanded to additional locations through new artistic residencies, cultural projects, or partnerships with cultural institutions, festivals, or tourism organisations. This approach allows the platform to grow while maintaining open public access.
Through this combination of public cultural funding, institutional collaboration, and scalable digital infrastructure, the project ensures its long-term sustainability while remaining accessible to a broad audience.
The application itself is free to access, as its primary aim is to provide open cultural access to contemporary artworks embedded in cultural landscapes. Rather than relying on direct user payments, the project operates through a cultural partnership model, combining public cultural funding, collaboration between partner organisations, and integration with local cultural and tourism ecosystems.
The partner organisations involved in the project continue to support the platform through their cultural activities, dissemination efforts, and artistic collaborations. Local stakeholders such as cultural organisations and tourism actors benefit from the app as an additional cultural offer that enriches the visitor experience.
In the longer term, the model is designed to be scalable and adaptable. The digital platform can be expanded to additional locations through new artistic residencies, cultural projects, or partnerships with cultural institutions, festivals, or tourism organisations. This approach allows the platform to grow while maintaining open public access.
Through this combination of public cultural funding, institutional collaboration, and scalable digital infrastructure, the project ensures its long-term sustainability while remaining accessible to a broad audience.
The Prosper Art Tour App was conceived as a model that can be replicated and adapted to different cultural landscapes and communities. Several elements of the project are designed to be transferable to other locations and contexts.
First, the digital platform itself provides a flexible structure that allows new routes, artworks, and locations to be added. The app can host different cultural walks and artistic narratives, making it possible to expand the model to other historic towns, landscapes, or cultural routes.
Second, the methodology developed through the artistic residencies can be reproduced in other places. Artists are invited to immerse themselves in a local context and create site-specific works inspired by the history, landscape, and everyday life of the location. These artistic interpretations then become part of a location-based cultural experience.
Third, the performative audiowalk format offers an accessible and low-resource tool for connecting art, cultural heritage, and tourism. It allows visitors to explore places at their own pace while engaging with artistic perspectives connected to the environment.
Finally, the project demonstrates a collaborative model between cultural organisations, local communities, and tourism actors, which can be adapted to different cultural ecosystems.
Because the platform is digital and the methodology relies primarily on artistic collaboration and local knowledge rather than large infrastructure investments, the model can be transferred to other geographies and contexts, offering new ways to explore cultural landscapes through contemporary artistic perspectives.
First, the digital platform itself provides a flexible structure that allows new routes, artworks, and locations to be added. The app can host different cultural walks and artistic narratives, making it possible to expand the model to other historic towns, landscapes, or cultural routes.
Second, the methodology developed through the artistic residencies can be reproduced in other places. Artists are invited to immerse themselves in a local context and create site-specific works inspired by the history, landscape, and everyday life of the location. These artistic interpretations then become part of a location-based cultural experience.
Third, the performative audiowalk format offers an accessible and low-resource tool for connecting art, cultural heritage, and tourism. It allows visitors to explore places at their own pace while engaging with artistic perspectives connected to the environment.
Finally, the project demonstrates a collaborative model between cultural organisations, local communities, and tourism actors, which can be adapted to different cultural ecosystems.
Because the platform is digital and the methodology relies primarily on artistic collaboration and local knowledge rather than large infrastructure investments, the model can be transferred to other geographies and contexts, offering new ways to explore cultural landscapes through contemporary artistic perspectives.
