As part of the 7th International Zrinski Art Festival, the Museum of Međimurje Čakovec hosted two exhibitions, courtyard performances, a series of sculpture workshops, comic book presentations, and a poetry collection promotion.
The theme of this year's Zrinski Art Festival was "LIGHT & SHADOW" - a theme that delves deeply into the visible (light) and invisible (shadows) realms. Light and shadows are integral aspects of the creative process across various artistic disciplines: from painting, photography, and comics to sculptures, installations, videos, performances, theater, dance, and music, as well as ambient (geo-art or earth-art) art. The Zrinski Art Festival brought all of these together in a plethora of artistic events over 4 days, from Thursday, September 8th to Sunday, September 11th, 2022, providing visitors with an intense artistic experience.
On Friday, September 9th, 2022, at 6:00 PM in the Multimedia Hall of the Treasury of Međimurje, an exhibition of photographs by members of the Photography Section of the Croatian Association of Applied Artists (ULUPUH) titled "LIGHT & SHADOW" was opened. Exhibiting artists included Janko Belaj, Saša Ćetković, Nina Đurđević, Hrvoje Grgić, Lorna Kijurko, Damir Klaić, Iva Lulić, Anto Magzan, Mario Majcan, Miro Martinić, Alan Matuka, Ratko Mavar, Zoran Osrečak, Zaneto Paulin, and Mario Periša. The exhibition remained open until September 30th, 2022. The opening of the exhibition featured speeches by art critic and curator Branka Hlevnjak, the president of the Photography Section of ULUPUH Janko Belaj, and the director of the Museum of Međimurje Čakovec, Maša Hrustek Sobočan. The exhibition catalog's preface by Branka Hlevnjak discusses how the theme of light and shadows opened numerous possibilities for photographers to approach this stimulating theme from various perspectives. The variations in the theme range from strong contrasts of captured scenes to direct play between light and shadows – one of the favorite and inexhaustible topics since the beginnings of modern photography in the 1920s. Various variations and creative games, whether through objects or captured urban or intimate atmospheres, span from the domain of erotica to autobiographies, portraits, or cultural events. As numerous as the photographers are, so are the diverse visual interpretations and playful variations, whether from high angles or very low perspectives; shadows will eagerly engage with this theme.
The exhibition remained open until September 30th, 2022, in the Multimedia Hall of the Treasury of Međimurje.
On the same evening, an hour later, at 7:00 PM, a collective exhibition of conceptual artists titled "LIGHT & SHADOW" was opened in the Exhibition Hall of the Museum of Međimurje Čakovec. Participating artists included Marijan Mirt, Ivana Mrčela, Ranko Ajdinović, Filip Novak, Dušan Vugrinec Vugi, Korana Gjalski Filipović, Iva Ružić, Arjun Šardi Puri, Diana Nazor Čorda, Brane Širca, Mirjana Drempetić Hanžić, Vesna Špoljar, Doroteja Cerovec, Nives Kocijan, and Helena Hlišć. The exhibition was opened by the director of the Museum, Maša Hrustek Sobočan, and the curator of the exhibition, Branka Hlevnjak.
The exhibition remained open until September 25th, 2022, in the Exhibition Hall of the Museum of Međimurje Čakovec.
The evening concluded with a performance titled "King of the Sun," performed by Piceferaj from Split.
Throughout the four days of the festival, sculpture workshops under the name "EXPERIMENT OF THE SOUL" took place within the premises of the Museum of Međimurje. The workshops were led by Arpad Slančik and Blanka Klaić. Participants created casts of their own faces, which were then transformed into glass. An exhibition of the works created during the sculpture workshop "Experiment of the Soul" was opened on Sunday, September 11th, 2022, at 5:30 PM.
On Sunday, September 11th, 2022, in the Multimedia Hall, poetry collection promotions for "NEURA" by Siniša Kolarić and the presentation of the comic book "WITHOUT MOUSTACHE" by Davor Schunk took place.
The long-standing collaboration between the Zrinski Art Festival and the Museum of Međimurje Čakovec has become an established practice, enriching the museum every year with new contours that enhance its identity. The Artistic Director of the festival is Damir Klaić Ključ.
