Heritage, freedom, progress and diversity – the underlying values of the European civilisation – are the topics dealt with by the exhibition European Phenomena in the Collection of the Gallery of Matica srpska launched at Matica srpska as part of the European Year of Cultural Heritage 2018. The exhibition was inaugurated by the Head of Information, Press, Communication and Media of the EU Delegation to Serbia Paul-Henri Presset.
“It is my honour and pleasure to open this exhibition. I am happy to see Serbia join other EU countries in celebration of the European Year of Cultural Heritage with a series of activities implemented by the EU Delegation to Serbia in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture and Information and numerous cultural institutions. The motto of the campaign is “Our Heritage: Where the Past Meets the Future” and it fits perfectly into our choice of venue: the Gallery of Matica srpska is a prime example of how one of the oldest cultural institutions in the country has managed to collect, preserve and showcase the finest examples of Serbian cultural heritage which will allow both present and future generations to build their own identity without giving up on the identity they had inherited,” Presset said.
The Director of the Gallery of Matica srpska Tijana Palkovljevic said that the exhibition comprised 67 works of art produced in the period between 1850-2005. The goal of the exhibition is to encourage people to think about and reconsider European phenomena.
“We have chosen the works we believe illustrate best the underlying European phenomena – freedom, heritage, progress and diversity. It is up to the audience to think about other possible European phenomena and whether we had made the right choice, whether the paintings we had chosen indeed paint the picture we thought they would. The paintings featured in the exhibition are part of our collection and have all been produced by Serbian artists, only a few of them have been painted by foreign artists. By putting them on display together with the works of Serbian painters, we offer a different perspective on the Collection of Matica srpska,” Palkovljevic said.
The exhibition is accompanied by a bilingual publication Evropski fenomeni u kolekciji Galerije Matice srpske / European Phenomena in the Collection of the Gallery of Matica Srpska featuring texts penned by curators and conservators Danilo Vuksanovic, Luka Kulic, Miroslava Zarkov and Stanislava Jovanovic, and reproductions of all works of art featured in the exhibition.
Assistant Minister for International Affairs and European Integration at the Ministry of Culture and Information Asja Draca Muntean explained what the chosen topics meant to her personally.
“Heritage is about the entire community. Freedom is something we all strive for, both as individuals and as a society. Progress implies both social and economic development, intertwined, and without them Europe would lose its most recognisable features. Last but not least, diversity presents itself as the underlying value of the European society and reminds me of the diversity of cultural expressions we cherish and interpret as a society. The exhibition – and lectures that will accompany it – meet all the criteria set out in the European Union’s decision to launch the European cultural heritage campaign. Even though Serbia does not have a membership status, we were invited to take part in the agenda and seize this opportunity promote Serbian cultural heritage, and, through this exhibition, the Gallery of Matica srpska is doing it the right way,” she said.
Over the course of the exhibition, various lectures will be given Fridays at 19:00, while guided tours will be made Saturdays at 11:00 and 17:00. For more information, please visit the web-page of the Gallery of Matica srpska. The exhibition runs through 16 September 2018.
