Jubilee exhibition of Vasilije Popovic – Cico (1914-2014)

Please note that the October 4, 2014 (Saturday), beginning at 20:00 pm, organized by the NI National Gallery of Macedonia and Museum of the Macedonian National Theatre, in Daut Pasha Hamam will be presented jubilee exhibition Centential, Vasilije Popovic – Cico (1914-2014). The exhibition is part of the event “White Night”. It will be open until November 4, 2014.

Vasilije Popovic – Cico was born in 1914 in Shkodra, Montenegro, and in 1938 he graduated from the Art School in Belgrade. He began working as a set designer in 1939 (along with Nichola Martinoski and Tomo Vladimirski) then the National Theatre ” King Alexander I” in Skopje (till 1941). From April to November 1941 he was a prisoner of war in German camps in Lübeck, and Nuremberg Hoenfelsu, while from April to September 1944 was a military internment camp in Upper Dzumaja. Upon release, he went to partisans and worked at the Headquarters of the National Liberation of Macedonia (Upper Village Vranovci). At the end of the year he became a set designer in the Macedonian National Theatre, the duty he performed until his death. From 1945 he worked as professor of drawing at the newly decorative art schools (now a National School of Fine Arts “Lazar Licenoski”) in Skopje. In the period 1945-1950 he worked with propaganda fine arts (literacy , harvest , selection), by making the badges, emblems etc. He worked intensively on cartoons, drawings and watercolors, illustrations and equipment book illustration and the first Macedonian reading book. He was creator of the Macedonian state is back and the first back of Skopje. Completed several study trips to Czechoslovakia, Italy, Greece, Poland and France. In 1957 he opened his first solo exhibition of watercolors and cartoons. Between 1960-1962 is resident cartoonist at the newspaper “Nova Makedonija”. Died December 10, 1962 in Skopje.

For his work, Vasilije Popovic – Cico has won numerous awards, including the Award: art work of the NRM Government and National Award for set design (Skopje, 1947); National Award for set design (Skopje, 1948); Award for art from the NRM Government (Skopje, 1950); Golden Arena for set design of the film “Miss Stone” (Pula, 1959); October prize for political cartoon (Skopje, 1960); October award for set design of “Bloody Wedding” by Lorca (Skopje, 1962). He was awarded the medal “Merits” Order and the “Thesis III order” for the development of the Macedonian culture. Posthumous realized more independent, commemorative and retrospective exhibitions devoted to his work in Skopje (1963, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1981); Belgrade (2012) and Prilep (2014).

The work of Vasilije Popovic – Cico is presented through texts by Mirjana Taleska, curator advisor; Dr. Jelena Lužina and Dr. Ivana Jarchevska. Taleska in his review of the work of Vasilije Popovikj- Cico emphasizes the following: “In the history of modern Macedonian art of the 20th century, Vasilije Popovic – Cico occupies a specific, separate and groundbreaking position. It is determined by the breadth of creative areas in which the artist has expressed himself, from his pioneering role in several areas, especially in caricature and scenic design, as well as the seriousness of the results achieved in each of them. ( … ) The man, with all his flaws and virtues, remained in the centre of his attention. He loved and observed the people he met, he socialized with them and unwittingly he analyzed them psychologically.” Lužina believes that “Today, Cico is deservedly treated by the Macedonian cultural history as almost a universal artist, as some kind of Renaissance painting and drawing phenomenon. When his complete creative assets are considered and summarized – graphics, drawing, painting, scenic design, costume design… – it will be undoubtedly established that it is a question of a creator, who, with equal passion and easiness, worked in different art techniques and genres, managing to be equally superior in all of them.” while Jarchevska pointis out that “The style elaborated by Vasilie Popovic-Cico and the aesthetics and the treatment with which he deals with the scene is the best work of visual imagery in the Macedonian theatre production. His sudden departure in 1962 left a lot of analysis and discussions about his work, and many questions about the capabilities and the possible creative solutions that would have been achieved by him, considering the progress and the ever increasing technical opportunities for solutions on the stage.”

The exhibition presents more than 260 works, including his personal belongings (watercolors, sepia, drawings, cartoons, setting and costumes sketches, costumes realized, drafts of books and publications, and his portraits made of his colleagues Dimo Todorovski, Dimitar Kondovski and Nikolov – Koco Fidanovski) that are owned by: NI National Gallery of Macedonia, Museum MNT, Museum of Contemporary Art – Skopje, Museum of the City of Skopje, Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts, State archive of the Republic of Macedonia, Vardar Film Macedonia, Association of writers of Macedonia, Gordana Popovic – Vasic (daughter of the author), and a number of private owners.

The exhibition was opened by Mr. Koce Trajanoski, mayor of Skopje and Professor Ljubisa Georgievski.

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Photos from the official opening …