Tonight, the “Applied Nostalgia Belgrade - Paris” exhibition was opened at the Cultural Centre of Serbia in Paris, showing the capitals of Serbia and France seen through the lens of photographers Nemanja Maraš and Laure Maugeais.
The exhibition was opened in the centre of Paris by Minister of European Integration Jadranka Joksimović in the presence of the Deputy Secretary General of the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs Caroline Ferrari, Serbian Ambassador to France and Monaco Nataša Marić, Director of the Serbian Cultural Centre in Paris, Natali Beljanski, the diplomatic corps, and media.
Joksimović has assessed that this exhibition emphasizes the “high frequency” of bilateral relations between Serbia and France in the areas of culture, economy, military cooperation, as well as strategic cooperation in the area of European integration and the European future of Serbia.
“Serbia has shown that it is fully committed to the highest European values, that it is committed to the concept of Europe as a common cultural, economic, democratic area, and space of peace. In the upcoming period, having in mind the formation of the new Government, we will pay even more attention to the European path to strengthen the reform process and show a strategic partnership with everyone in the EU, and especially to continue our successful partnership with France”, Joksimović has said.
The Minister of European Integration of Serbia has emphasised that the exhibition in Paris is being opened just a few days before the meeting of EU and Western Balkans leaders in Brussels, initiated by French President Macron, who is expected to deliver important messages in light of the difficult and demanding geopolitical situation in Europe and the world.
“The war in Ukraine brought new challenges to the entire continent, but also drew even more attention to what needs to be done in the Western Balkans in order for that area to be peaceful, stable, and so that it could contribute to European values”, Joksimović has stated.
Deputy Secretary General of the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs Caroline Ferrari, in her statement to Tanjug, has noted that the exhibition at the Cultural Centre of Serbia in Paris illustrates in a good way the “closeness and friendship” of the two capitals and two countries.
“I believe in the power of images. Images can speak, they can bring people together and help them understand each other better. This exhibition is a great opportunity to continue to build our relationships based on friendship and trust. It also illustrates the fact that we belong to the same European space based on a common history and future”, Ferrari has said.
“Applied Nostalgia” is an exhibition organised by Serbia on the occasion of the rotating presidencies of EU member states in the EU Council, where all the similarities of European values and the way of life characterizing Belgrade and other capitals on the European continent are presented.
The photographs of Belgrade, displayed at the exhibition, were made by French photographer Laure Maugeais, who told Tanjug that she had found inspiration in the changes of the city in the light of the European perspective.
The changes are really big and modern, and yet the city is still full of love, and that appealed to me”, Maugeais has noted.
Serbian photographer Nemanja Maraš has said that he has a “special connection” with Paris, seeing the most similarities between Belgrade and Paris in people and energy.
“If we are talking about the visual aspect, Paris has been lucky to have kept the same appearance for centuries, while Belgrade has changed a lot, especially in the last 15 years. If we are going for a literal comparison, those are photographs of flea markets from Belgrade and Paris, which are exactly the same”, Maraš has estimated.
The exhibition of photographs of Belgrade and Paris is part of the new, 21st cycle of the long-standing “Applied Nostalgia” project. The Paris visitors will be able to see the exhibition in the Cultural Centre of Serbia until June 25, while in Belgrade it will be put on next week and will last until the end of the month.
Source: Tanjug
