What others say about Belgrade Photo Month
My solo exhibition at Belgrade Photo Month was the best installation I ever had of this specific series. The relentless efforts of David Pujado in finding the right space for the show, having the vision for the installation, and securing the required funding with the help of the Israeli Embassy all contribute to the exhibition’s success. I feel grateful to have had the opportunity to visit the beautiful city of Belgrade to attend the festival and see all the remarkable work that was presented, and hope to do so again in the years to come.
Natan Dvir – Photographer
Belgrade Photo Month is a place of exchange! Be it with Belgrade citizens, be it with international or Serbian artists. For me it was a place to get in touch with so many, a place of exchange – an exchange which also reaches over the EU borders. This is not self-evident but here it happened. Of course it was a perfect fit to show ›Europastrasse‹ at the festival, since it is a project which exactly addresses trans-european topics. Congratulations to this very well curated festival!
Otto Hainzl – Photographer
I loved Belgrade Photo Month!!
After spending so many years abroad, I am really happy to rediscover France, Europe, and its surrounding countries. The festival was quite amazing as it was an opportunity to discover some new work, in a new place (wonderful wonderful city of Belgrade) and show my work to a new part of the world.
It’s a great international festival that promotes the work of local and international artists. I particularly appreciated the warmth and dedication of the whole BPM crew who all worked very hard to make everything happen. There is also an amazing effort to create exhibitions that matter in spaces that make sense and are coherent. Every single thing in that festival is made out of passion and conviction. Everyday, there is at least one new opening. It’s pulsating non-stop. David really cares about the photographers he invites, makes sure that they are there to represent the work, and really creates a lively event through the whole city for an entire month- from a cinema, to a small gallery, from a fancy gallery, to a squat on the other part of town. It’s open to everyone and accessible to all – that is what the real beauty of it is. This is how culture should always be. The choice of works is quite diversified and there are enough choices for all kinds of tastes.
To me, this festival was one of the best experiences, especially on a human level. It was not just a way to show my work, but to really have a sharing experience in a quite unique place and make meaningful encounters.
Long live to BPM!
Julie Glassberg – Photographer
Winning the first prize in the New Talents open call was an amazing experience for me. David and the Dutch Embassy made it possible for me to visit Belgrade and attend the opening. Everything about the festival was organized really well, and because the exhibitions are held across the city, I’ve been to a lot of places where you do not normally come. Also, the exhibitions were diverse, which I find really inspiring.
The best of all this was to meet a lot of new people from the local community and photographers from all across Europe! Hopefully we meet again soon.
Debbie Schoone – Photographer
The BPM festival was fantastic !!
An amazing program, varied and international. The organization was impressive as where the different galleries and art spaces.
Many many great artists, images and new friendships.
I am honored to have taken part in such a important event.With LOvE anD AnarCHy,
Raul Diaz – Photographer
In today’s world, when “photography matters as art as never before” (M. Fried, 2008), a photo festival is an essential event for any modern city striving to make a name for itself on the global map of cultural centers. David Pujadó, with his team of dedicated and passionate photography aficionados, are alchemists, who have managed to create, maintain and grow Belgrade Photo Month, with modest resources, into a superb festival of international caliber. I have no doubts that the next edition will raise the bar even higher.
Siniša Vlajković – Photographer and independent curator, sinisavlajkovic.com
The Belgrade Photo Month is essential to generate cultural habits in Serbia and to promote photography in Belgrade, a city to discover with very friendly people.
Cláudio Garrudo – cultural producer, editor and photographer
For me, as an Austrian artist who is interested in historic connections, it was a very valid experience to be part of the Belgrade Photo Month. Not only was it great to see the local photo and arts community but to engage my work and thinking with Serbia, its history, and the relations to the neighbouring countries – including my own.
As the festival is really spread across the city and in very diverse venues it actually forced me to investigate geographically into the city and that was fantastic. As a participant I was very well taken care of and I will try to come back as a visitor for the next edition.Lukas Birk – Photographer, www.lukasbirk.com
Belgrade Photo Month is a unique international event. The atmosphere of the city and the festival made a great impression on me.
For a month, we could see many great exhibitions. I liked the varied nature of the presented photographs. Starting from new trends to classic photography. I found interesting the exhibitions referring – with the help of photos – to other fields of art such as, for example, music, or referring to the history and culture of Serbia or former Yugoslavia.
The number of exhibitions, meetings, presentations, and photo workshops was impressive. It was very nice to see the passion and professionalism of the festival organization. The director David Pujado, the whole team of Belgrade Photo Month and Про3ор Gallery were very helpful and I am very pleased with how they prepared my exhibition.
It is an excellent festival, which enables us to see interesting exhibitions, learn about the culture and history of beautiful Belgrade. And above all, it is also the opportunity to meet great people and outstanding photographers.
I am very grateful for the invitation to the festival and the realization of my exhibition; I will definitely want to visit Belgrade Photo Month in the next editions.Marcin Ryczek – Photographer, www.marcinryczek.com
Dear Ms. Tibbon,
I am writing you from Belgrade, Republic of Serbia.
Rumi said: “What you seek is seeking you.”
I don’t know if you believe in coincidence, or nothing is accidental, but…
Recently, while I walked with my dog on Kalemegdan, I saw your black and white photos of Lalibela.
I’ve never heard anything about you and your work, or Lalibela, so.. I can’t find the right words to describe the impression in my soul while I watched those photos u made.
it was like an earthquake in me – why?, I can’t explain.
They (photos) are beautiful, deep, mysterious, sad and so true.. I’m really happy to discover you!.. and part of the world I did not know exist.
I thought to myself, how the eye of the beholder, your eyes, is not yours, but the Force (God) is looking through you, showing us what we don’t or can’t see… and everyone is looking for something, and there are no unbelievers.
Thank u beautiful women, u remind me of Sarah Connor (not the singer) 🙂 – a strong and independent woman who tries for itself and for others to understand the essence of life through your lens.
Thank you for coming to Serbia, to a small nation and a small country, just like Israel, martyrize for so many centuries. We share the same pain, and where is great pain, there are great souls.
Whatever you believe in, I wish long life and love always accompany you, and never leave you.
God bless you, and lot of love from me to you.Aleksandra – exhibition visitor
I have participated in the first two editions of Belgrade Photomonth with “What’s this Book” (2016), “Uncensored Books” (2017), and “H.said he loved us” (2017), three curatorial projects related to photography and photobooks. In this sense, I have seen the Festival since its birth and very first steps.
Belgrade Photo Month has had a decisive impact on the cultural life of Belgrade. More to this, it is a Festival with a challenging program open to new formats and means of expressions. It works as platform for all of us, photographers and professionals from all over the world, to develop contents. But most importantly, it provides us with the opportunity to reach new audiences outside the confinements of the established international photography scene and a thriving community of photographers that has a lot to contribute to the photography scene both in Belgrade and abroad.
Natasha Christia – Curator – www.natashachristia.com
Although I participated as an exhibitor in the Belgrade Photo Month, I must point out that the real significance of this manifestation is felt as a photographer and follower of cultural events. It is truly a fantastic feeling when for one month at every step you can see photography exhibitions, follow workshops and lectures, or review portfolios! However, what is especially important is that many of these developments represent a new and different approach to photography, offering new ways of viewing a photo and inspiring photographers to take more inventive approaches to their work. Because of this, but also because of the wonderful gatherings throughout the festival that create opportunities to meet like-minded photography enthusiasts and the professionals who deal with it, I think that the Belgrade Photo Month is one of the most beautiful things that has happened to the Belgrade photography scene, and furthermore the city’s cultural scene.
Aleksandra Lekovic – Photographer
For such a city in the Balkans, to have a photo-festival of this kind is very important for its cultural scene with a huge tradition in arts. The program brings a very wide choice of proposals and paths in several art spaces, this is also a great opportunity for those who want to discover (again) the city. Belgrade photo month is also an opportunity to meet really great people, curators, artists of course, but also the public always keen to discover more.
As Art Director of the Quinzaine SHOOT! in Chamonix, I would love to make the jumelage between the cities become reality.
Laure Maugeais – Photographer & Art Director – www.lauremaugeais.com
Finally, Belgrade is part of the EU.
Nowadays, a country that wishes to be considered with respect and be powerful on the international level has to have a PHOTO FESTIVAL.
This year is the second edition of the Belgrade Photo Festival.
Second edition…. a toddler of a festival. But. Let us have a look at the program. Around fifty (50,00) exhibitions.
Workshops. Conferences, lectures, talks. A photo market. Plus projection of movies such as Alice in the Cities, Persona, Z, and of course Blow up and Profession Reporter.
Impossible to quote all of the many exhibitions, conferences, etc… because there is around a hundred (100,00) events related to photography during the time of the festival, one month, April.
Check the catalogue, because there is a catalogue. A real one, with pages.
Why is it so important that a city like Belgrade has a festival of this importance and quality. Belgrade is in the Balkans.
We know students, young photographers, mid-age photographers, old photographers, do not all have the possibility to go to the Rencontres d’Arles, PhotoEspaña, Fotofest Houston festival…Creating a festival of such a scale and scope allows not only the local public to enjoy it but also the neighbouring countries.
Running a workshop these days with students and young photographers, I can see the high level of education as well as the creative potential these young people bear within themselves as well as the works that should be seen on the international scene. Young people who are hungry for seeing photography not only on internet but in exhibitions, real prints, the impact of a curator’s work, meet and exchange with people related to photography during all of these many events.
Let us not forget these very days are special in Belgrade. Every day at 6 p.m. starts a pacific demonstration, a massive demonstration.
So the programme of the Belgrade Photo Month has to adapt to the local life and schedule, and to the reality of the present time.
By the way, how does a festival see the light, how does a festival become international already for its second edition?
One man, passionate, do we have to say it, crazy, do we have to mention it, lovely crazy, of course, fell in love with this city. To prove his love, he built a palace in the middle of desert.
Coming from a country where some spend their time tilting at windmills, David Pujado, the pioneer, the creator, the director of the Belgrade Photo Month, made a dream come true as well as he filled in a gap. He is a survivor because he knows how to fight windmills. And there are many more windmills than one could think, all around.
Therefore we must hope and believe that David Pujado will be concretely supported on all levels, in this pioneering adventure to give the festival long life.
People, be aware that the palace David Pujado is building is not for granted.
Yet, we are sure, David Pujado, already known in this part of the world as David Pužadović, will never forget that his compadre, Don Quixote, said:“No limits, but the sky.”
Klavdij Sluban – Photographer – www.sluban.com
What Belgrade photo month makes so seductive is dynamism of the program. Dynamism not because of the relevant art content and diverse artists and poetics that the festival promotes, but also because of the usage of so many city gallery spaces, which directly activates people and brings city to life.
Belgrade deserved long time ago, to, with quality projects like this one, get closer to other European capitals. By supporting this project we are not supporting only David and the team of the festival, we are supporting the idea that the world should be part of the Belgrade, and Belgrade part of the world.
Deyan Clement – Photographer – www.deyanclement.net
I thoroughly enjoyed attending and exhibiting my work in this year’s Belgrade Photo Month, a festival which although is at its early stages, it is extremely well organized. Belgrade is currently going through an exciting cultural boom so it was a pleasure to have the opportunity to get to know the photo community here. I look forward to coming back in the near future.
Rubén Salgado Escudero – Photographer – www.rubensalgado.com – Instagram
In April 2016 the Belgrade Photo Month will be held for the first time. From my personal experience as Managing Director of Eyes On – Month of Photography Wienna I can say that over the years such an event will evolve a huge interest from participating photographers and artists as well as from the local audience.
European Month of Photography (EMoP) is a network established by the Cities of Berlin, Paris and Vienna in 2004, which today represents photography festivals in eight European capitals. One of the main goals of this network is to develop a common exhibition every two years, usually including artists from the respective countries. So far five such exhibitions have been produced and presented under the patronage of the Mayors in the frame of each cities festival.
We encourage public and private institutions to support this great project, and look forward to welcome Belgrade as a new member of EMoP in the near future.
Thomas Licek – Managing Director of Eyes On – Month of Photography Wienna and President of Association of European Month of Photography (EMoP)
Belgrade is still one of the most exciting destinations in the Balkan region, despite a decade of crisis that has slowed down the development of the capital city. The specific energy present in this city attracts people from all over the world, although the touristic potential is not used as much as it could be, particularly the specific culture present in the city and the art scene. The very popular tourist destinations of the world realized a long time ago that today’s tourist does not expect just good entertainment, but also quality cultural content that leaves a deep mark in their personal experience and creates a long term relationship with the visited place.
As one of the youngest art disciplines photography is adaptable to all of the changes occurring within society and technology, so today photography has become a widespread art discipline all over the world. The use of the photograph is far beyond the sphere of art and has become an inevitable part of our everyday life. First of all, photography attracts young people who are searching for their own form of expression and positioning within the society in which they live. Also photography is a powerful medium for social engagement, criticism and engaged thought generally.
Unfortunately, on the cultural scale in Serbia and Belgrade, photography is not considered to be on a high level within the arts and still falls under the shadow of classic art such as music, painting, graphics and sculpture. This festival of photography is a chance to determine and secure the position of photography in the cultural scene of Belgrade and Serbia. This would direct the attention of both the local public and foreign visitors to this interesting and dynamic medium, the transformation of which happens faster than in any other art discipline.
The festival of photography would engage numerous cultural institutions such as cultural centers, galleries, schools, as well as individuals who will promote and advance photography: curators, critics, writers and lecturers. Numerous artists, particularly the younger generation, will get a chance to show their work in public locations, while already established artists will secure a high level of quality as would be expected from such a festival. The specificity of the region in which we live, with the frequent collision of cultures during historical turmoil, leaves a deep mark on artistic production and photographers are no exception to this influence.
Because of globalization, authenticity has become exclusive; the hunger for specific cultural expression is increasing. On one hand, the isolation of Belgrade from the cultural world scene is very bad because it disables the development of an art market, but on the other hand it helps to keeps the authentic art expression of this region. Belgrade Photo Month will enable the coherence of this specific expression and its representation to the region generally. This could produce the photographic market necessary for this region.
Ivana Tomanović MA – Associate Professor AUNS and ReFoto magazine executive editor
The need for a festival like this is a cultural rising of urban society, with visual and art awareness in Serbia being at a low level. This is partly due to photography, possibly the the richest art discipline of the 21st century, being almost invisible in the context of art in schools and not to mention its value in terms of a national treasure!
Djordje Odanovic – Professor at the Academy of Arts, Novi Sad
Belgrade Photo Month is a festival that would gather together a large number of photographers and photography enthusiasts. Nowadays, when technology is very much developed and has become accessible to almost everyone, more and more people are engaging in photography. Everyday life is being documented with photography, from the capturing of an interesting moment with a mobile phone, to very serious artistic photographs.
For this reason, I think that it is necessary to organise a festival like this and to raise the awareness of photography to a higher level. Photography is not just a memory from vacations or family celebrations; it is a document of the times in which we are living. It appears in seconds but remains as a document of time, whose detail in the corner can initiate an avalanche of ideas and information.
This media itself is the most compact and fastest way for the transfer of information, presenting the most details about the material, motif, emotions of the subject and of the author as well. Because of modern technology a large number of photographs are presented to us on a daily basis, that is why it is necessary to educate a person to read the image, select and create their personal criterion.
Organizing photography workshops gives a chance for the exchange of experiences and ideas, cooperation among young photographers, an opportunity to learn something new and to experiment using old techniques in a new and creative way.
Nebojša Babić – Photographer, Director of O3one gallery, member of ULUPUDS, USUF, PPof-E i SAM
In a relatively short time, the Bartcelona Concept Gallery, located within Belgrade Design District in Čumićevo Sokače, has become a notable exhibition space and meeting place for photographers and artists.
Bartcelona presents a multitude of local and foreign artists which are, within the carefully designed selection and presentation of exhibited photos, refreshing the local photography scene.
With his professional manner in running the gallery and his enthusiasm for photography, David Pujado has become the guarantee for quality and original exhibitions at Bartcelona Concept Gallery.
I regularly recommend my colleagues, students and friends to visit and see the photography exhibitions at this small and already well known Belgrade gallery.
The idea of David Pujado being able to organise the Belgrade Photo Month seemed almost impossible due the local cultural conditions. However, he has devoted himself to the job consistently and systematically, gathering more and more supporters for this idea along the way. Personally, I will gladly support the team preparing Belgrade Photo Month and I hope that a number of institutions will also support the festival and help to organise and realise this festival of photography in our city.
Dragan Pavlović DOC, MA – Photographer, member of ULUPUDS and lecturer at Singidunum University for media and communications
Over twenty years ago started one of the most dynamic and productive periods in the development and history of photography. This is noticeable not only in the presence of photography in the press and media, but above all in intensive art production, numerous exhibitions, photography galleries, artists with different approaches, lectures, seminars, conferences and the appearance of new views on photography. The first festival of photography was launched in Arles, 45 years ago, as a meeting place for photographers and enthusiasts. At the beginning of the Seventies in the 20th century, another important international photo festival was established, Paris Photo. Today there is more than one hundred photo festivals worldwide, confirmation of the important role for this media in art, culture and society nowadays.
Apart from Festival Photonic Moment held in Slovenia, only a few small photography festivals exist in Serbia and the Balkan region. Belgrade Photo Month will be the first large festival to be staged here. The main goal of the festival is a validation of photography with analysis, consideration, presentation of photography, artists of different generations and actual production techniques. At the same time, the festival aims to present various national photographic and art scenes to an international audience and vice versa. By including photographers, artists, curators, art historians and theoreticians, media, as well as art, cultural and other public institutions in the city, Belgrade Photo Month can contribute not only to the contemporary history of photography, but also to the art and cultural scene in Serbia and beyond.
Jelena Matic MA – Art and media theoretician and art historian
