THE IMPRINT OF TIME 70/∞
Grafički kolektiv – 70 years

19. June - 18. August 2019.

On Wednesday, June 19th at 7pm the monographic exhibition THE IMPRINT OF TIME 70/∞, Grafički kolektiv – 70 years was opened at SANU Gallery in Knez Mihailova Street 35; the exhibition was opened by prof. dr Vladimir Kostić, president of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts.

The Graphic Collective, a significant segment of Serbian cultural heritage and a vital participant on the contemporary scene, is celebrating a great jubilee in 2019 - seven decades of activity. Respecting the dignity and importance of this unique institution for national culture, the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts has initiated this exhibition that recognizes and marks the artistic, historical and leading role the Graphic Collective, the place of encounter and specific hub of the cultural life of Serbia and former Yugoslavia, the symbol of Belgrade and the inseparable part of the national spiritual identity.

This monographic exhibition focuses on the seven decades of the work of the Graphic Collective and on the vision of its pioneering role during the 1950s, whose vital energy is still present and visible in conceptual and practical realizations in the context of contemporary culture. The continuity and tradition of the Graphic Collective are represented by this exhibition structured in several segments, pointing to the most important works, programs and personalities that laid the foundations of this House.

The prominent part of the exhibition consists of the anthological works of the contemporary graphic art, awarded with the Gread Seal Award (56 works) established in 1963. The selection from the Collection of the Graphic Collective, the Collection of posters from the fifties, the works of the authors awarded with the Small Seal Award, archive material (publications, videos from the opening of exhibitions, presentation of the history of the Graphic Collective), are also parts of this multimedia concept. In the context of various segments of work of the Graphic Collective - exhibitions, awards, collections, international cooperation, educational programs, shaped intellectual and critical discourse - dominant streams are visible, as well as the aesthetic changes in which the Graphic Collective directly participated, followed them and affirmed.

The author of the exhibition is Ljiljana Ćinkul, art historian and art critic. The publication accompanying this exhibition consists of articles by Irina Subotić, Gordana Popović Vasić, Ljiljana Slijepčević, Ješa Denegri and Ljiljana Ćinkul focusing on the significant segments in the existence and activity of the Graphic Collective and its Gallery: from the social and cultural atmosphere in which the ideas of the Graphic Collective were initiated and nurtured, to the mapping of the most important programs and exhibitions in Belgrade and abroad and the specific events that confirm the thesis that this House of Artists has always been a cult place and synonym for a spirit of innovative, contemporary and daring critical thought.

Catalog THE IMPRINT OF TIME 70/∞, Grafički kolektiv – 70 years

Opening of the exhibition (photos by B. Vasić)

Meetings with Artists

Presentation of the publication THE IMPRINT OF TIME 70/∞, Grafički kolektiv – 70 years