The promotion and development of the ideas of tolerance in a cultural and artistic manner is also an important part of the Festival program, considering public space an excellent platform for communication with citizens through art. Not only does it educate all the layers of society and invites them to a collective action and to enhance an intercultural dialogue, but it also enriches the cultural activities of the city.

The rich program of the 9th Festival of Tolerance is accompanied by exhibitions, the  themes of which follow and amplify the messages of the Festival – breaking down stereotypes and prejudices – in a form that is accessible to anyone, a platform for furthering a dialogue and raising public awareness. Through four photography exhibitions, visitors will be confronted with a tragic and not-so-distant past of our territories, or with the rejection of differences and cases of intolerance from all over the world, but also with  more positive examples of building a dialogue between individuals and institutions, or of accepting someone ‘different’ to our society.

Tarik Samarah: ‘1945 – 1995 – 2015’

‘Those who survived death camps 70 years ago, thought: Never again! Those who survived Srebrenica 20 years ago, hoped: Never again! The world today, along with future victims, watching old pictures from the times of the Holocaust and genocide,   reading news about the terrible events in the world, does not want to believe that it will happen again. Wasn’t there enough of it?! Let’s do everything in our power to stop it!’

Branko Lustig, president of the Festival of Tolerance.

In the year in which we mark the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and the 20th anniversary of the genocide in Srebrenica, the Festival of Tolerance presents the exhibition of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian photographer and artist Tarik Samarah, 7 city lights, which can be seen in different locations in Zagreb. The photograph of a Srebrenica mother, standing in front of the house of Anne Frank, enlarged and presented in our surroundings, streets, parks, squares, presents a powerful statement of time, reminding us of the necessity of change, so that the horrors of the past would never repeat again.

Donata Pizzi – ‘Intolerance Zero’

The opening of the photography exhibition ‘Intolerance Zero’ is scheduled for Saturday, April 11, in the Italian Cultural Institute, Preobraženska 4. The title itself is quite clear; everyday intolerance in the world, in our surroundings. The photographer Donata Pizzi has travelled across the globe, from Europe and North America, to Africa and Asia, and has photographed the exact places where hate crimes have been committed from the beginning of this century. This exhibition has been shown in different cities and in various cultural manifestations, including the Milan Triennial in 2011. After the exhibition opening a discussion will be held, in which relevant experts on the topic will participate, as well as the author herself, speaking about the levels and frequency of (in)tolerance in today’s world, a problem that affects all cultures, all countries and all layers of human societies.

Photo contest – ‘Intercultural Encounters’

‘Dialogue of Cultures‘ is the name of the task force founded within the Austrian Federal Ministry for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs, with the objective of building trust and peace, strengthening democracy, respecting human rights and overcoming stereotypes and prejudices. One of the task force’s initiatives is a photo contest with travelling as its central theme; a total of 189 photographs has been received and the jury has proclaimed five winners. The opening of this photography exhibition is scheduled for Friday, April 10, in Gliptoteka (Gallery IV), with the support of the Federal Ministry and Austrian Cultural Fora. The curator of the exhibition is Mario Beusan, a university professor from the Faculty of Architecture in Zagreb, the rightful owner of many awards and recognitions, including one from 2005 – the Award for Life’s Work from ULUPUH (the Croatian Association of Artists of Applied Arts).

Photo exhibition ‘Prince Soniyiki – Integration of a refugee into Croatian society’

Parallel to the photo-contest exhibition, in cooperation with the UNHCR, Gliptoteka will host an exhibition about Prince Wale Soniyiki, a 29-year-old refugee from Nigeria, whose asylum in Croatia was approved in 2012. He fled from bloody conflicts in his country, in which two of his brothers were killed. In this photo-essay photographer Nena Lukin (more on the artist, her work and inspiration, on http://www.nena-lukin.com) has captured different moments and events in Prince’s new life, from the start, his arrival to the new country, learning the language, helping in the Centre for Asylum Seekers, all the way to his new work place, a fishing boat in Biograd, at the Croatian coast. Prince himself, nowadays better known as ‘African Šime’ (a nickname given to him by his colleagues, one of the most often names in Dalmatia), will attend the exhibition opening. Mario Beusan is the curator of this exhibition as well.

Multimedia performance ‘Ye Shanghai’

Festival of tolerance presents an intriguing audio – visual performance by Roberto Paci Dalò, Italian musician, composer, movie and theatre director, visual artist in Europa Movie Theater. He presents his work all over the world, in traditional venues (museums, galleries, opera houses) but also does site – specific projects, defining it himself as ‘media dramaturgy’ and ‘theatre of listening’.
The ‘Ye Shanghai’ performance has been premiered on September 6th 2012 at the biggest Art Fair in Asia, SH Contemporary Art Fair in Shanghai, and since then has been presented all over the world. Croatian audience will have an opportunity to see the performance played live by the artist on Thursday, April 16th 2015 at 10:15 PM.