Opening of photo exhibition of old photographs from Kragujevac (19th and early 20th century), Anastas Jovanović

’’I do not understand how anyone can be without photographic camera’’

- Anastas Jovanovic

The legacy of Serbian 19th century photography is primarily consisted of the works and documents  of Anastas Jovanovic. The exhibited works are part of the gift of Katarina Jovanovic, the daughter of a distinguished artist, benefactress of Belgrade’s cultural institutions, who devoted her whole life to the development of the national spirit of a society. The peculiarity of this collection is that objects reflect the nineteenth century socio-political and cultural environment in Serbia

In the year 1840. Jovanovic meets, for first time, the new technical discovery – photography. Although this is not the first known photographic process, the daguerreotype is the first “recognized” image.

Anastas Jovanovic continued to pursue photography after the year1844. mostly with talbotype photographs, and then with other photographic techniques. He produced an outstanding body of work. Besides the portraits of many figures in Serbian history, culture, science, and social life of the 19th century, he made a large number of panoramas (Vienna, Belgrade, Kragujevac, Petrovaradin).

Works and documents of Anastas Jovanovic, except in the Military Museum, are located in the Belgrade City Museum, the Historical Museum of Serbia, the Ethnographic Museum, the Museum of Vuk and Dositej, the National Museum and the National Library of Serbia in Belgrade and in Novi Sad, the Gallery of Matica Srpska.

Opening of the third annual exhibition of photo club “Apolo”

Founded on St. George’s day in 2010. as the common  idea of a group of photography enthusiasts, Apollo photography club is now much more than that. It was named in the honour of Dragoljub S. Milovanovic’s first photographic studio in Kragujevac, ‘Apolo’ respects and accepts all those people who find photography as an integral part of their lives. Photo Club brings together both professionals and amateurs, and organizes a section for the youngest fans of the photographic magic.

In the 2011. we boldly started to  establish the first art photography festival. And we have succeeded – we have selected the best teachers and helped the participants to improve their work and photographic skills. We organized workshops, lectures and exhibitions. This year we are organizing second consecutive FOTORAMA festival in order to be much better and more successful than in the previous one. This time we bring not only national lecturers, but also significant international names from the world of photography. Each of the festival’s participants and photography lovers will find something for themselves, and most importantly, they will meet like-minded people and find a place for socializing.

We are particularly proud of the previous club’s annual exhibition with the theme of ‘Portrait’ organized within Fotorama 2011.. This time you are looking at 3. Annual Exhibition of PC ‘Apolo’ symbolically called ‘Three’. We invite you to enjoy and feel the power of photography making that led us to the creation of these images. 64 works made by 32 artists, members of ‘Apolo’ photo club, lie before you..

Opening of the exhibition ‘Together with nature’ of fraternity photo club ‘Doboj’ from Bosnia

Photo-cinema club ‘Doboj’ was founded in the 18th of February, 2010. and has worked within the Centre for Culture and Education, Doboj. The club continued the rich tradition of photography in the town of Doboj, which lasts from 1965, when the first ‘Bosna’, Doboj photo club was established. The club currently has 52 members and is a member of the Photographic Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In addition to eight club’s exhibitions, photo-cinema club ‘Doboj’ acts as an organizer of many events which have contributed to the popularization of art photography in Bosnia and Herzegovina. A photo exhibition entitled ‘Together with nature’ is the eighth club’s exhibition, in a certain way dedicated to photo club ‘Apolo’ from Kragujevac, with which the club maintains a special relationship in order to promote art photography both in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

 

President of the photo-cinema club ‘Doboj’, Zoran Lazic

Opening ceremony of the exhibition “Biba’s attic” by Marko Stamatovic

The combination of familiar characters, from national heros to pin-up girls, indicates the biblical postulate of the creation of a new cycle of life and heritage. Carefully orchestrated, encouraged by decorum, forgotten old smiles come to life and are no longer memories or souvenirs, but declaimers of the future. With this ‘new-old’ photograph the cheerful idea that life and history can be reconstructed survives, that we can become some other people, and win against the time, that with the shadows of antiquity we can be the best monument. ‘Remembrance and long memory’ really is a long lasting inspiration of the museum spirit and historical concept that gives the meaning to the ‘…Son’ company to function as the covenant of our time.

Jelena Đordjevic – Miletic

Art historian

(Srpski) Fritz Hoffmann

Fritz Hoffmann is an American photographer whose work focuses on culture, the environment and global economics, with a long-term interest in China. He is a contract photographer for NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC Magazine. Fritz moved himself to Shanghai in 1995 and was a full time resident photojournalist based there for thirteen years. He studied Mandarin at Shanghai University and has photographed in each of China’s provinces and municipalities numerous times. Fritz opened the NETWORK PHOTOGRAPHERS (UK), Shanghai bureau in 1997, and in 2002 he co-founded documentCHINA, a picture agency based in Shanghai with online distribution for documentary photography of China. Prior to this, Fritz established his place as a respected international photo-correspondent while working with JB PICTURES, New York. Under the JB banner, he moved his base of operations to Nashville, Tennessee just before the first term of US President Bill Clinton increased interest in the American South. (source: fritzhoffman.com)

(Srpski) Branislav Strugar

Branislav Strugar was born in Belgrade in 1949. He has been active in photography since 1968. As member of the Elektromašinac Photo Club, he exhibited his photographs in 107 exhibitions and won 40 awards and diplomas. He holds a title of a Master of Photography of the Yugoslav Association of Photographers.

He started his professional career in 1974. He is a member of the Association of Applied Arts Artists and Designers of Serbia (ULUPUDS) and the Association of Journalists of Serbia. He worked at the Television of Belgrade as photojournalist for over twenty years. In 1996, he left the post and gained the status of independent artist of photography.

(Srpski) Aleksandar Kujučev

Aleksandar Kujucev was born in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. He graduated from the Art University of Belgrade, Academy of Applied Arts and Design as photographer and graphic designer. He had numerous one-person shows and took part in more than 70 group shows. Received grants for art projects in France and USA. In his commercial line of work he collaborates with many Yugoslav rock & pop stars, works for fashion designers and does editorials for best Yugoslav magazines. Worked for all major advertising agencies in Yugoslavia: Saatchi & Saatchi, Leo Burnett, Bates, Ovation BBDO, Sholtz & Friends, Publicis Virgo, ICPS, Cyber Entertainment… etc.

Some of the international clients were: Smirnoff, Lucky Strike, ICN pharmaceuticals, Sony, Coca Cola, Reebok, Pepsi, Procter & Gamble… etc. Many ads featuring his photographic work were awarded at NewYork Festivals, Eurobest, Epica and Cresta. He is highly specialized in digital image postproduction and compositing.

(Srpski) Milan Aleksić

Milan Aleksic, a professor of photography, Faculty of Philology and Arts, University of Kragujevac and the New Academy of Arts, European University of Belgrade. In his career he had over 20 solo exhibitions, of which eight solo exhibitions abroad. In the country he has exhibited in venues such as the Museum of Applied Arts, Museum of Contemporary Art (Salon), Belgrade Cultural Center, National Museum Kragujevac, etc. He has participated in important group exhibitions representing our photography and contemporary art in the most representative national and international venues.

These actions followed the media appearances and mentions in media such as Britain’s The Sunday Times, German Die Zeit, Junge Welt, Frankfurter Algemeine, as well as in all local media including Politika, Novosti, Naša borba, etc.

He acquired the highest level of education in a two-year master’s photography degree at American Cornell University. Milan Aleksic was significantly involved in the academic area within the newly established photography program that treated the photography as fine art. Under his supervision dozens of students graduated at the Department for Photography. He also held classes at the University of Arts in Belgrade, where he was in commissions on the first doctorates in the arts, as well as at the University of Novi Sad and Communication Faculty in Banja Luka.

He achieved a number of important curatorial projects and has published articles in national and international journals.