The Motovun Encounters, organized as international meetings of visual artists, were theme-based events held from 1972 to 1984 in Motovun, Istria. Eleven meetings of artists of different poetics, generations and backgrounds took place throughout this period. The meetings were organized by the Galleria del Cavallino from Venice, Ethnographic Museum from Pazin, and, joining the endeavor in 1976, the City Gallery of Contemporary Art (today MSU).
The Motovun Encounters opened up new possibilities of collaboration between the Italian and Yugoslav artists and encouraged the internationalization of artistic space, sparking interest in the contemporary art practices and most recent events in art, in a unique setting, amidst a scenery enclosed with natural and built environment of Motovun, the valley of the Mirna River and the morphology of the hillside town. Looking at the social framework and the context of cultural and national policies, one can recognize the constellation of several elements: the presence of the Committee for the Revitalization of Motovun with its role in the revival of the forgotten place after WW2, and artists’ encounters as a cultural and social prerequisite for creating the resources i.e. an art collection for establishing an art institution. At the same time, the cultural collaboration between Italy and SFRY reflected an improvement of relations between the two countries after the end of World War II; art and various forms of cultural diplomacy functioned here as a tool of “soft power”, a tool for establishing international connections, enhancing the understanding of the scope and possibilities of contemporary art practices, and all this taking place in the shadow of the Osimo Agreements of 1975. In this sense, the theme of “identity”, which characterized the 1976 meeting, may also occupy a significant place.
Connecting local artists with young and renowned authors, both Croatian and international, The Motovun Encounters gathered more than a hundred names, such as: Marina Abramović,Claudio Ambrosini, Ivan Ladislav Galeta, Tomislav Gotovac, ŽivaKraus, Sanja Iveković, Dalibor Martinis, Julije Knifer, Ivan Kožarić, Zdravko Milić, Josip Diminić, Ivan Matejčić, Dora Maurer, François Morellet, Michele Sambin, Duba Sambolec, Mladen Stilinović, Miroslav Šutej, Ulay, Goran Trbuljak, Luigi Viola and others. From today’s perspective, the most significant artist encounters were those that took place between the mid-1970s and the early 1980s, covering the following topics: Urban Intervention Project (1974); Identity, (1976); New Landscape, Photography and Polaroid (1977); Silkscreen Printing (1978); Paper transformations (1979); The ‘80s Youth / New Painting (1980); New Sculpture (1981); On Paper (1983); and finally, Postmodern Architecture and Motovun Architectural Heritage (1984).
Connecting local artists with young and renowned authors, both Croatian and international, The Motovun Encounters gathered more than a hundred names, such as: Marina Abramović, Claudio Ambrosini, Ivan Ladislav Galeta, Tomislav Gotovac, Živa Although initially conceived only as an attempt to revitalize the city, the Motovun meetings evolved into serious professional gatheringsof artists and art critics. In a multitude of art colonies, the Motovun encounters attracted particular attention by choosing to explore new artistic phenomena and follow new developments among the upcoming generations of artists.
From a text by Branka Benčić
Curated by: Branka Benčić, Jasna Jakšić
Assistant: Laura Bui
Production: Museum of Contemporary Art Zagreb
Partners: Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMSU), Museum of the City of Pazin
Design: Martin Peranović
Exhibition setup: Branka Benčić, Jasna Jakšić
Restoration and conservation: Leda Grabičanin, Mirta Pavić
Technical support: Dalibor Cicvara, Mirjana Grab, Nenad Lalović, Renato Mihaljenović, Aleksandar Milošević, Ivan Tudek, Filip Zima
Exhibition texts: MMSU
Translation: Laura Bui, Lidija Toman
Support: City of Zagreb, Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia
