Within the ‘Artist in Residence’ (Plants AiR) project of the ‘Novi Sad 2021’ Foundation, a unicycle instructor and competitor, Galina Ryom-Røjbek, held the ‘UNICYCLE Just for You’ workshops on 23 and 24 March. Local support at the workshops were members of ‘Ludifico’ and ‘Kreativni Pogon’ organisations, which deal with studying, presenting and popularising circus skills in Novi Sad. The main objective of the workshops is to have fun, take up the challenge, check the balance, and take the ride in a friendly atmosphere. Learning from the experience and practice is also very important. Galina says that unicycling offers the opportunity to those who learn to ride it to actively explore their abilities and what they can do with their balance. In addition to this, a connection among the members has to be established because the support is very important.

‘How strong are we to support a person to achieve a goal, and how much are we ready to accept someone’s support?! The aim of this workshop was balance. This is one of my key exercises. You could learn to ride a unicycle yourself while standing next to the wall, but being in the space with your partner is really a wonderful feeling. After the first part of the workshop everyone understood the point and I really could see a different kind of connection. Keep in mind that they are kids. I would like to connect young people and see how they are able to support each other,‘ Galina said.

This whole experience could be applied to all other aspects of life, she added.

Talented instructor and unicycle world champion comes from Denmark, but was born in Bulgaria. She is a member of the Sofia Unicycle Club, established last year. More than 500 people are currently involved in unicycling in Sofia. They practice hard every week in order to improve their riding skills, become better in tricks and to have fun through this unusual sport.
Workshops with Galina Ryom-Røjbek are implemented within the residential programme of the Foundation with the aim of internationalisation of the local artistic scene, education and networking of local artists with their foreign colleagues and organisations. Through this programme the ‘Novi Sad 2021’ Foundation supports artists from Novi Sad to implement outgoing residences, as well to give the opportunity to foreign artists to come to Novi Sad and exchange knowledge and experience with local artists.