Guest Exhibition “Records of Togetherness and Intimacy – The Photography Vault of the National Conservation Service as a Promoter of Culture and Tourism” at the Croatian Museum of Tourism.

The exhibition is being opened on the occasion of European Heritage Days and the 180th anniversary of tourism in Opatija.

The author of the exhibition is Sanja Grković, head of the Cultural Heritage Photo Archive at the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia.

This year also marks the two hundredth anniversary of the establishment of photography, that distant harbinger of the digital era we witness today. Therefore, this exhibition combines all three anniversaries.

With this exhibition, we have slightly opened the door to the national conservation analog photographic treasury, which is today preserved under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and Media, its central Cultural Heritage Photo Archive, and the photo archives of its conservation departments throughout Croatia.

Under the auspices of the conservation and related services, these photographs were created over the last century in the alchemy of darkrooms. Unique and impressive both in content and aesthetics, they bear witness to a past era.

On them, we observe cultural landscapes, buildings, artifacts, people, their lives and skills, their communities, and intimacies. Displayed in this way today, they represent the coexistence of culture and tourism. In addition to their documentary significance, they also hold artistic value. All these depictions and photographs are our priceless cultural heritage, our signposts and foundations for the future. It is our duty to protect this treasure, just as a shell protects its pearly interior.

The exhibition remains open until December 29, 2024.