The Federal Ministry of Culture and Sports has started today with the celebration of the “European Heritage Days” with the programme titled “Landscape Architecture and Living Heritage”, enriched with a street art performance. This traditional manifestation is this year organized under the motto “Living Heritage”, once again by the countries across Europe that promote the cultural diversity of the European continent and the rich heritage of its peoples.
The Federal Ministry of Culture and Sports wants to encourage artists, children and young people to create and promote artists‘ authorship and works of art that treat in a way the traditions of the peoples of BiH and make them available to the wider audience.
The 27th “Days of European Heritage” are going to be realized by the Ministry through a series of programmes until 12 December, on which date the final event will be held in Mostar.
Minister Sanja Vlaisavljević has addressed the guests on the promenade, in front of the Ministry building:
I am so happy that we have gathered at this place again, on the promenade in front of the Ministry building. Well, it has already become our tradition! I am glad to see the young people who joined us to open the “Days of European Heritage 2023”. From today until mid-December you will have an opportunity to see and hear the stories about landscape architecture, street art. Furthermore, the competition for children and young adults in art, music, handicrafts, visual arts, documentary film will be organized. The most successful participants in all these categories will present their works at the closing ceremony in Mostar, in the Cultural Centre “Kosača”. Until then, every Wednesday, at this place, on the promenade, the citizens will have an opportunity to listen to beautiful music, and watch the process of handicrafts creation. In that way, we will all enjoy the presentation of the living heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina”, Minister Vlaisavljević announced.
Azra Lojo-Hajro, the Head of the Scientific Research Department at the Federal Ministry of Culture and Sports, presented this year’s new way of implementing the “Children, Youth and Cultural Heritage” programme, an important segment of the manifestation that encourages young people to preserve, care for and love cultural and historical heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina:
“The Youth and Heritage” programme has been running for 27 years in parallel with the “European Heritage Day” programme. All these years, we received countless art, literary, documentary, video works and photographs of primary and secondary school students. This year, over 80 schools participated in the “Youth and Heritage” programme, and about 250 works were received. This year, in addition to an exhibition in a gallery, there will also be a virtual exhibition of students’ works.
All works will be available on the website of the Ministry, where students will be able to vote for the best works, and our goal, in addition to education about cultural heritage, is to include them in the decision-making process. Soon, all participants of this project will be informed via the website about the method of this year’s voting. What makes me particularly happy is the fact that through the implementation of this programme, which has lasted for more than two decades, we have influenced the choice of occupation of some of the participants, and I am sure that it will be the same in the future“, Lojo-Hajro proudly pointed out.
The “Obojena klapa” Association from Sarajevo has started implementing the “Living Heritage and Landscape Architecture” programme and the creation of a mural on the facade of the ground-floor of the Ministry building. The final product will be visible soon. A panel discussion on the topic “Street art, Wall Painting or Resistance to Norms” will also be organized in the forthcoming days, whereby a special emphasis will be placed on the protection of national monuments.
In the musical part of today’s programme, the Sevdah Quartet and the students of the High Music School from Sarajevo performed, led by the conducting teacher Tijana Vignjević. Elmedina Aličić and Husein Bajraktarević, a young accordionist who, represented Bosnia and Herzegovina in the junior competition, and won the third place in the classical category “accordion” at the World Cup in Switzerland.
