The home of Albania's late communist dictator is now hosting what he despised most: Free thinkers

TIRANA, Albania (AP) — In a historical twist, the home of Albania’s late communist dictator Enver Hoxha is hosting international artists fascinated by the long-ruling leader’s library, the country’s history of isolation and its unique traditions.

The metamorphosis of Villa 31 — where the Hoxha family lived for decades until his regime was toppled in 1990, five years after his death — encapsulates Albania’s radical transformation from one of the world’s most hermetic countries into the modern society it is today.

The sprawling, 4,000 square meter (43,000 square foot) house with more than 100 rooms, built in the 1970s in the capital of Tirana, was a heavily guarded place of power where Hoxha both ruled and feared his own people. Albania's ruler was known for his paranoid behavior and saw enemies everywhere.

Now surrounded by high-rises, trendy bars, posh restaurants and pulsating nightclubs, the villa itself has undergone a transformation, complete with a fresh coat of paint — though the ostentatious downstairs hall with marble floors is still there.

Gone are the heavy curtains that blocked sunlight. Long silent walls will from now on echo with poetry readings, experimental theater, film screenings and contemporary art exhibits. The rooms offer workshops and shared areas for 23 artists from 15 countries.

The villa's rebirth stems from a pledge by Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama to visiting French President Emmanuel Macron in October 2023 to turn it into an artists’ center — “something that would make Enver Hoxha roll in his grave.”

Closed off to the public until now, the villa has welcomed artists, residing there since late January, and hopes to soon see tourists too.

“This is what I believe is the power of art, to deal with a past and a painful past, like the one that this villa symbolizes,” said Nita Deda, manager of Art Explora, a French-based foundation that spearheaded the building's transformation.

Inside the studios that replaced once labyrinthine apartments, visiting artists have the freedom to “express everything, from fury to anger, to betrayal, to ambivalence, to the absurd ... exactly his (Hoxha's) worst nightmare,” said Ukrainian artist Stanislava Pinchuk.

Pinchuk, 37, says she is happy to come to Albania, the “last puzzle piece” of former communist countries, though she finds it difficult to sleep at the villa.

She is baffled by Hoxha's library, which holds books by his communist idols — Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Joseph Stalin and Vladimir Lenin — to books about the French Revolution and students’ protests in the former Czechoslovakia and Hungary in the 1950s and 1960s. There are also books on sex, which ordinary Albanians were banned from reading at the time.

The library was a testament to “an ideology refusing to die," Pinchuk said.

Reading “Kanun,” a book on Albanian customs, Italian artist Genny Petrotta, 34, marveled at the practice of sworn virgins — a centuries-old tradition in which women declared themselves to be men so they could enjoy the same rights within the society that men enjoyed, though they did not considering themselves transgender.

“It’s a story about power," Petrotta said, adding that she was “impressed by the analytical way” the book described the phenomenon.

The villa’s underground tunnels, built as shelters in case of an attack, also fascinated the visiting artists. Their exhibit will open in April, and Albanians, no longer fearful of the late dictator, will be able to view the art.

Under Hoxha's repressive regime, some 100,000 Albanians were imprisoned, sent to internment camps or executed during the 46 years of his repressive regime.

Albania today has seen its economy and society develop rapidly, and 10 million tourists visited the country last year.

Some, however, disagree with Villa 31's transformation, and say it should have stayed untouched, a history lesson for the tourists and generations born long after Hoxha's regime collapsed.

Xhevdet Lani, a taxi driver and an older resident of Tirana, said the villa is “historic evidence of what the dictatorship once was.”

“It would have been better if it had remained for generations so that our children and grandchildren could learn from it,” he said.

Stanislava Pinchuk from Ukraine, works on a project in Villa 31 where the late communist dictator Enver Hoxha, once a symbol of totalitarian rule used to live, in Tirana, Albania, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlasov Sulaj)

Nita Deda, manager of Art Explora works at her computer at Villa 31 where the late communist dictator Enver Hoxha, once a symbol of totalitarian rule used to live, in Tirana, Albania, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlasov Sulaj)

An interior view of Villa 31 where the late communist dictator Enver Hoxha, once a symbol of totalitarian rule used to live, in Tirana, Albania, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlasov Sulaj)

An interior view of Villa 31 where the late communist dictator Enver Hoxha, once a symbol of totalitarian rule used to live, in Tirana, Albania, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlasov Sulaj)

An interior view of Villa 31 where the late communist dictator Enver Hoxha, once a symbol of totalitarian rule used to live, in Tirana, Albania, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlasov Sulaj)

An interior view of Villa 31 where the late communist dictator Enver Hoxha, once a symbol of totalitarian rule used to live, in Tirana, Albania, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlasov Sulaj)

An interior view of Villa 31 where the late communist dictator Enver Hoxha, once a symbol of totalitarian rule used to live, in Tirana, Albania, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlasov Sulaj)

An exterior view showing Villa 31 where the late communist dictator Enver Hoxha, once a symbol of totalitarian rule used to live, in Tirana, Albania, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlasov Sulaj)

Nita Deda, manager of Art Explora, poses for a photo in Villa 31 where the late communist dictator Enver Hoxha, once a symbol of totalitarian rule used to live, in Tirana, Albania, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlasov Sulaj)

An interior view of Villa 31 where the late communist dictator Enver Hoxha, once a symbol of totalitarian rule used to live, in Tirana, Albania, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlasov Sulaj)

An interior view of Villa 31 where the late communist dictator Enver Hoxha, once a symbol of totalitarian rule used to live, in Tirana, Albania, Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Vlasov Sulaj)

NEW YORK (AP) — Jalen Brunson was hobbling and Madison Square Garden had gone quiet as the New York Knicks fell deeper into a hole late in the third quarter.

Brunson then left the court for what appeared to be a change of sneakers, though maybe that wasn't all.

“I think he grabbed his cape,” coach Tom Thibodeau said.

Brunson and his teammates were sure super from there.

Brunson scored 34 points, Cam Payne had 11 of his 14 in the fourth quarter and the Knicks stunned the Detroit Pistons with a 21-0 run to rally for a 123-112 victory Saturday night in Game 1 of the first-round playoff series.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 23 points and 11 rebounds in his first playoff game with the Knicks and OG Anunoby also scored 23 points for the No. 3 seeds, who will host Game 2 on Monday night.

The Pistons held up well for more than three quarters of their first playoff game since 2019 and had a 98-90 lead, a little more than nine minutes from ending their NBA-record, 14-game postseason losing streak.

By the time they scored again, the Knicks were ahead by 13 points, the delirious fans in the arena roaring louder with every Pistons miscue after they played with such poise for much of the game.

Payne converted a three-point play to start the run, Brunson scored and Payne made a 3-pointer to tie it at 98, and the onslaught would last for nearly five minutes. Payne and Brunson combined for the first 17 points before Josh Hart had the final two baskets to make it 111-98 with 4:50 remaining.

“I been kind of waiting on that all year,” Payne said. “I've been waiting on this game, how I played today, all year.”

Tobias Harris scored 25 points for Detroit, but just three in the second half. Cade Cunningham had 21 points and 12 assists, but the Knicks limited the star guard to 8-for-21 shooting in his playoff debut.

Brunson, who missed 15 games late in the season with a sprained right ankle, was just 4 for 15 in the first half and appeared to tweak the ankle again. But he changed out of his green sneakers and found another gear in the fourth along with the Knicks.

“Obviously, we didn’t end the third quarter the way we wanted to, but there was never a doubt that we’re going to just lay down and not fight,” Brunson said. “We had to find a way to figure things out and keep battling and I mean, it turned around quickly.”

The Pistons remained winless in the postseason since Game 4 of the 2008 Eastern Conference finals.

“Obviously, for this group, guys having first-time playoff experience, just understanding yeah, it stinks to lose, but it’s all about how you come back,” Harris said.

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New York Knicks guard Cameron Payne reacts during the second half of Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Detroit Pistons, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) falls during the second half of Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the New York Knicks, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns hugs his dad, Karl Towns, Sr., following Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Detroit Pistons, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York Knicks guard Cameron Payne reacts during the second half of Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Detroit Pistons, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson reacts during the second half of Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Detroit Pistons, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) reacts following Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Detroit Pistons, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York Knicks guard Cameron Payne reacts during the second half of Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Detroit Pistons, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York Knicks guard Cameron Payne reacts during the second half of Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Detroit Pistons, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) shoots past New York Knicks forward OG Anunoby (8) during the first half of Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson reaches for the ball during the first half of Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Detroit Pistons, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Detroit Pistons guard Malik Beasley reacts during the first half of Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the New York Knicks, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Detroit Pistons guard Dennis Schroder (17), left, moves past New York Knicks guard Pacome Dadiet (4), right, during the first half of Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York Knicks guard Cameron Payne reacts during the first half of Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Detroit Pistons, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York Knicks forward OG Anunoby (8) shoots past Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) during the first half of Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson reacts after a three point shot during the first half of Game 1 in an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Detroit Pistons, Saturday, April 19, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)