SLOVENIA
Area: 20 273 km² - Population: 2 million - Capital: Ljubljana
Official Language: Slovene - Date of joining the EU: 2004
A FEW INDICATIONS
Literature in the Slovene language began developing in the mid-16th century, when the first book in the Slovene language was published, a Lutheran catechism. But it was with the awakening of national feeling in this province of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in the 19th century that the language came into its own, by way of its two most famous representatives, France Preseren (1800-1849) and Ivan Cankar (1876-1918). It was at that time that Slovene painters managed to win a certain reputation, particularly Ivan Kobilca and the Impressionist Rihard Jakopic. The country’s most admired writer is the romantic poet France Preseren (1800-1849), whose work strongly marked Slovene literature, while contributing to the development of national awareness. As far as music is concerned, even if numerous traditions have been lost since World War II, the compilations of the Trutamora Slovenica trio nevertheless make it possible to get back to the roots of Slovene music. The music known as «popular» covers a whole range of styles. Painting and sculpture have been dominated since the 1980’s by the post-modern work of the versatile group Neue Slowenische Kunst (NSK) and of the five anonymous members of the artistic cooperative called IRWIN. Finally, with respect to architecture, Slovenia owes a number of its most important buildings and public squares to architect Joze Plecnik (1872-1957).
ORGANIZATION OF CULTURAL POLICIES
www.mk.gov.si (site in English)
EVENTS CONNECTED WITH THE COUNTRY
Franco-Slovene Tandem
20-23 August in Aurillac, Festival d’Aurillac
Installation/ Spectacle
Course à l’ amour (Run for Love)
A reinterpretation of the famous scene from the Odessa stairway (The Battleship Potemkin, Eisenstein/ 1925), A run for love is a creation resulting from collaboration between a director and a Slovene plastic artist. With participation by musical group EZ3kiel.
And also...
30 June-5 September in Paris, Musée de l’Armée (Armed Forces Museum)
Exhibition
The Soca Front: World War I in the Slovene Alps
This exposition describes the history of the greatest battle that people have ever fought in the high mountains: along a front of 90 kilometers, paralleling the magnicent Soca Valley, between 1915 and 1917, twelve battles were fought at an altitude of 2 800 meters, resulting in a number of victims similar to the Battle of Verdun, from among all the peoples of Europe.
- Updated: 18.06.2008
