With great interest from citizens and visitors, the fifth edition of the Maestrale program, was opened on Saturday evening, marking the beginning of the celebration of 120 years of organized tourism in Makarska, jointly organized by the Makarska Tourist Board and the City of Makarska.
Numerous visitors gathered in front of the Tonoli Palace for an evening that combined music, art, and the city’s collective memories. The program opened with a concert by the band Ljetno kino led by Max Juričić.After nightfall, the official opening of Maestrale followed, along with the presentation of the video installation.by Lina Rica, an artist born in Makarska who is now active on the international contemporary art scene.
The video installation was created to mark 120 years of organized tourism in Makarska and will, throughout the year, be displayed in the windows of the Makarska City Museum and the Tourist Information Center in the Tonoli Palace on the city waterfront. Its creation used more than one hundred archival postcards and photographs documenting the development of Makarska over the decades.
Speaking about her work, the author Lina Rica said: . “In the work 120 Summers – Topography of Memory, I used archival photographs and contemporary video footage to create a space where past and present meet through techniques of video collage, animation, and generated animation. Starting from visual traces of different periods, I sought to connect layers of collective memory and show how the city, its spaces, and its people change over time. By overlapping archival and contemporary scenes, compositions of image within image emerge, in which different temporal layers become simultaneously visible within the same frame. The work explores the relationship between memory and space, reminding us that the past is not separate from the present but permanently inscribed in the landscape, architecture, and everyday life of the city.”
After the opening, the concert by Ljetno kino continued in an excellent atmosphere. The band’s distinctive Mediterranean sound and energy quickly won over the audience, confirming why these musicians have enjoyed cult status among lovers of good music for years.
A special moment at the very end of the evening occurred when Darko Rundek, spontaneously joined the band, stepping from the audience onto the stage and performing several songs together with the musicians, to the delight of those present.
The fifth edition of Maestrale continues throughout the summer with a series of cultural programs that, through art, heritage, and contemporary interpretations, reveal the authentic identity of Makarska.