The official opening of the Festival took place on May 25th (Saturday) at 12:00, in NUCC “Trajko Prokopiev” with the well-known inter-club exhibition entitled “Circle.” This year, members of our FC Kumanovo club had the opportunity to test their skills with Photo-cinema club Paraqin from Serbia, considered one of the most significant and award-winning clubs in the region. The photos, submitted by the members, were judged by last year’s competitor, ‘Format’ photo club from Čačak. This competitive exhibition showcased about fifty selected photographs. The president of the Kumanovo Photo Club presented trophies for the first, second, and third places to the most successful photographers, along with three diplomas for ‘competitor photos.’
Following this exhibition, at 12:30 p.m., the display of works from the two largest Kumanovo primary schools, “Kocho Racin” and “Krste Misirkov,” was opened. Almost the entire club contributed to the realization of these photos, captured by students from the photo section led by mentor Marina Krstić. The members provided lectures, photo-safari events, and presentations to the students, fostering their creative expression. The results were presented in about twenty photographs, in a small format, at the “House of Culture.” This exhibition was also competitive, with students receiving diplomas for the first, second, and third places.
The caravan of exhibitions continued in the Art Gallery at 1:00 p.m. with a solo exhibition by the renowned Novi Sad photographer, a member of the Vojvodina Photo Club, Jan Valo. The collection “On the Road to Destiny” comprises 30 photos through which Jan presented his worldview and the emotional stories of various destinies from his surroundings.
Next in the repertoire was the club exhibition “Tumba,” the opening of which was also held in the Art Gallery at 1:30 p.m. Here, the audience had the opportunity to see twenty photos from members and students of FC Kumanovo. Traditionally, at this exhibition, diplomas for the final course were awarded to this year’s students.
The program continued in the “Craft House” with the international exhibition “Play,” opening at 5:00 p.m. Here, the public could acquaint themselves with about sixty artistic photographs by authors from around the world, recognized as the best in their field of photography in the past year. The exhibition featured photos in nine themes (free color and monochrome, photojournalism, women, travel, nature, life, street, and minimalism).
The Saturday program concluded with the independent exhibition of Photo Club Kumanovo member Zaklina Stefanovska at 6:00 p.m. in the club premises. The exhibition showcased 26 works by the author in different themes, predominantly scenes from everyday life, all of which pose a challenge for the author herself.
