Outside the Centre

The ‘Outside the Centre’ project will take place in Novi Sad and Zone 021 from 13 to 30 August, and it encompasses exhibitions, art events and an educational programme.

Works of important figures of contemporary artistic happenings from the countries of the Danube region (Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, and Serbia) will be presented at the exhibition. The name Outside the Centre indicates the phenomenon of current art functioning outside the big cities: in the current ‘iconosphere’ contemporary art is no longer directed only towards the concept of the ‘centre’ but also towards the margin, that is – smaller cities, outskirts, rural areas… This is another confirmation that Beuys’ maxim ‘art = life’ is proved today in the most diverse variations – from artistic to sociological and geographical-spatial terms and areas.

The concept of the exhibition envisages presenting the art of authors who are members of minority nations in the aforementioned Danube countries. Such a choice of artists a priori points to the intertwining and coexistence of peoples in united Europe, but also to the functionalisation of art as a cohesive universal practice. The selectors for choosing the participants of the four exhibitions will be Serbian artists Dejan Kaludjerović who lives in Vienna, Bálint Szombathy living in Budapest, Olja Triaška Stefanovič in Bratislava, and Milovan DeStil Marković in Berlin. In their environment, they will choose artists from the local minority national communities or ‘guest workers’ from the Danube countries and thus achieve a unique impression of the intertwining of different cultures operating in the Danube region.

In accordance with the concept of the Outside the Centre exhibition, the decision was made to present it in places in the immediate vicinity of Novi Sad, in zone 021 (Sremska Kamenica, Sremski Karlovci, Čerević, and Irig), because in addition to Serbs, these are the places in which the members of various national minorities live. Locations of exhibitions and art events were chosen based on the criteria of their belonging to the cultural and historical heritage.

1. The exhibition at the Homeland Museum in Čerević, from 13 August at 7.30 p.m.The exhibition will be on display until 23 August.
2. The exhibition at the Marcibanji-Karačonji Castle in Sremska Kamenica, from 13 August at 8 p.m. The exhibition will be on display until 23 August.
3. The exhibition at the Karlovci Grammar School in Sremski Karlovci will be opened on 19 August and will last until 10 September.
4. The exhibition at the Mihiz’s House in Irig will be opened on 19 Augustand will last until 30 August.
5. The ‘Interweaving Art’ performance which is scheduled for Saturday, August 20, has been POSTPONED due to weather conditions and you can follow all information about this program on the official channels of the Bel Art Gallery and in the media.

The project will be implemented within The Danube Sea programme arch.

Photo: Rokko Juhasz