The zine titled Балкантурист (Balkantourist), includes souvenirs of Desislava Pancheva's 11-week stay in Zurich.
Leaving her base at message salon embassy Zurich Nord’s studio on Hunzikerareal, the Bulgarian artist makes her way through Zurich’s apartments, streets, clubs and art spaces as a Balkan tourist. The founder of Hip Hip Library has quickly collected a compendium of encounters, made many friends and enriched the city with her infectious energy. Desislava Pancheva has become actively involved in the publishing off-scene of Zurich, widened her network and, with the Hip Hip library, created a temporary library that served as a meeting point in Zurich Nord – all in message salon embassy’s studio.

In her newly-published zine “Балкантурист”, Desislava Pancheva transforms the photographic souvenirs of her romps and encounters into a poetic essay. A photographer by training, she arranges the selected pictures, whether analog or shot on a smartphone, into surrealist collages and narrative montages.
The zine “Балкантурист” describes the filtered perception of a foreigner in a foreign city. Observations, internal images and day dreams alternate with portraits of people who have crossed the traveller’s path.

The title of the zine itself has an ironic twist: “Balkantourist” was the name of a travel agency founded in Communist Bulgaria that gained great popularity in East Bloc countries. Bulgaria’s beaches on the Black Sea were a beloved travel destination for East Bloc countries and the label “Balkantourist” is still associated with a sense of longing and nostalgia.