Skopje’s Face-lift Starts Falling Apart

Marred by controversy from the start, partly because of its steep price, and partly for its dubious artistic choice, drawing inspiration from Classical antiquity, the brainchild project of former PM Nikola Gruevski was originally promoted as giving a brand-new look to the shabby-looking City of Skopje.

During the hey day of construction, between 2011 and 2017, when the former government collapsed, critics pinpointed the project's poor choice of materials and questionable artistic quality as some of its many flaws.

Now, with many of the completed buildings, fountains, bridges and monuments barely five or six years old, the project already shows signs of wear and tear. Cracks and crevices are visible in many of them, and in some cases, constructions have literally started crumbling away, exposing the poor building materials used.

The pillar holding the bronze monument of St Mary, Mother of God, shows visible crevices. Photo: Vasko Magleshov

Cracked tiles where the newly built Bridge of Arts meets the pedestrian track along the Vardar River in central Skopje. Photo: Vasko Magleshov

One of the many bronze statues that adorn the Bridge of Arts has started uncoupling from its pedestal. Photo: Vasko Magleshov

The marble fence on the Bridge of Arts was never a solid piece. Photo: Vasko Magleshov

Marble blocs that form part of the Bridge of Arts fence have disjointed. Photo: Vasko Magleshov

The faux-marble pillars that dominate the Archaeological Museum show what appears to be signs of damp. Photo: Vasko Magleshov

Some of the adornments in the surroundings of the neo-Classical National Theatre have fallen apart, exposing the cheap...