sobota, november 27, 2004

Partisan graphics highlighted in new Ljubljana exhibit

The International Centre of Graphic Arts in Ljubljana will open a new exhibit, "Partizanski tisk" (Partisan Press) on 30 December. The exhibit focuses on printed materials created by and/or for Partisans between 1941 and 1945, under the extreme conditions of the Second World War.

The Partisans, led by Josip Broz Tito, were military forces guided by the ideology of Communism who emerged during the war and ultimately assumed control of all of Yugoslavia, including Slovenia.

On exhibit are examples of pamphlets, posters, books, fliers, illustrations, periodicals, agit-prop, song books, youth-oriented literature, cartoons, currency, textbooks and other examples of graphic design from the period. Their artistic, design and political-ideological propaganda functions are highlighted.

The exhibit was prepared by the International Centre of Graphic Arts and the Museum of Contemporary History of Slovenia. It runs through 20 March 2005 and is accompanied by an illustrated catalogue featuring six essays on topics such as the symbols of Partisan politics and Partisan print shops.

posted by editor @ 4:45 pop. 0 comments

Slovene architecture exhibited in Berlin

A show of contemporary Slovene architecture opened on 26 November in Berlin. The show is called "Gradbišče Slovenija" (Construction Site: Slovenia), and is curated by Vladimir Šlapeta, Miha Dešman in Andrej Hrausky. It was prepared by Ljubljana's DESSA architectural gallery.

Construction Site: Slovenia presents 23 architectural projects executed since Slovene independence in 1991, with particular emphasis on the past five years. The influence on contemporary Slovene architecture by Jože Plecnik and Edvard Ravnikar is also highlighted.

The exhibit is part of a cycle of exhibits of modern architecture from Eastern Europe supported by the German Academy of Arts begun in 1994. Past shows have focused on Poland, Moscow, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Estonia [Večer / 25.11.04 / V Berlinu razstava sodobne Slovenske arhitekture].

posted by editor @ 4:44 pop. 0 comments

Easyjet now links Ljubljana with Berlin

On 25 November, Easyjet began regular service between Ljubljana and Berlin, in addition to its already well established Ljubljana - London route.

Flights between Berlin's Schoenfeld airport and Geneva, Krakow and Madrid have also begun, which makes Shoenfeld an even more desirable hub for travelers [Mladina / 25.11.04 / Od danes Easyjetova povezava Ljubljana - Berlin].

posted by editor @ 4:43 pop. 0 comments

Death of sex worker in Bosnia puts region on red alert

The tragic case of Olena Popik, a victim of human trafficking from Ukraine who died last month in Bosnia, has caused tremors in Slovenia and throughout the region. The latest issue of The Slovenia Times includes a story on Popik, as did much of the media in the country.

Popik worked as a prostitute in Bosnia as well as in Slovenia and Serbia. Her official cause of death was tuberculosis, complicated by syphilis, hepatitis C and AIDS.

Bosnian police have uncovered at least part of the human trafficking ring that brought Popik to their country. They have also released word that many of her clients were upper-class businessmen and politicians. Popik told the police herself before she died that she was with an average of eight men daily and rarely used condoms.

The question now is, how many of these men will now come down with any - or all - of the diseases she was carrying? [ST / 12.04 / End of a Tragic Life].

posted by editor @ 4:36 pop. 0 comments

sreda, november 24, 2004

Ljubljana International Film Festival premiers "Tu pa tam"

The Ljubljana International Film Festival (LIFFe) is currently underway. Even though the Festival of Slovene Film (FSF) ended as LIFFe was beginning, this festival still managed to host the premier of a Slovene film, Mitja Okorn’s Tu pa tam (Here and There).

The film was shut out of the FSF because it was insufficiently professional, but by many critics' accounts, it was just as good if not better than many of the films that were shown during that festival. LIFFe clearly thought the same, as evidenced by it's being shown during that festival just days later.

Unfortunately, Tu pa tam does not exist in a 35mm format and so its future is unclear. A 35mm copy would be required for it to be distributed around the country. Mitja Novljan’s Norega se metek ogne (Bullets Miss The Fool) is in a similar position. That flim did manage to be included in the FSF, but attracted little attention despite its interesting premise and high entertainment value.

Nevertheless, Okorn told 24ur.com to expect his film to be in theatres in January [24 ur.com / 16.11.04 / Dvakrat odbiti 'Tu pa tam'].

posted by editor @ 12:53 pop. 0 comments

Dispute over Sarajevo park continues

The story of the initiative of Bosnia’s Slovene community to renovate Prešeren Park in Sarajevo is continuing to attract attention.

The Slovenes successfully petitioned the city to name an illegal parking lot near the National Theatre in downtown Sarajevo “Prešeren Park” back in 1994, but only in October were they able to move forward with their renovation of the site. Plans call for landscaping and the installation of a fountain and a wall engraved with lines from Prešeren poems.

Work began on 13 October but was quickly halted.

Local Muslims led by the Vakufska Direkcija and the Hadži Mujaga Society are now demanding that the site be returned to them. A mosque and cemetery formerly stood on the site, but were destroyed in 1947 after the lot was nationalized by the Communist government. A group of nearly 100 protesters is holding daily prayers at the site now in order to prevent further work being done.

The protestors are led by Nezim Halilović-Muderis of the Vakufska Direkcija and Emin Švrakić of the Hadži Mujaga Citizens' Society. They want a temporary mosque to be built on the site, and a permanent structure would then be built once the land was returned to the local Muslim community.

According to Mladina, the Muslims cannot possibly get back the entire site, since an apartment complex also stands on it. However, they stand a better chance of getting back the illegal parking lot than getting back a fully refurbished Prešeren Park [Mladina / 15.11.04 / Pri Prešernovi džamiji and Delo / 19.11.04 / Prešerenov park ali Kalin hadži Alijeva džamija]

posted by editor @ 12:50 pop. 0 comments