Dear Friends, Admirers of Art,
Good Evening,
There is a quote from Franz Kafka that describes man’s greatest dilemma about his own existence which says: “All art forms serve the greatest of the arts – the art of living on earth”.
Unfortunately, we are witnessing that in the era of unprecedented information, technological and scientific development, instead of people being more secure and happier, living in many places in the world turns into a struggle for power, dominance over others and obsession with material things. We are witnessing military conflicts, global health threats, disrespect for human rights and freedoms, humiliation of dignity, tectonic displacement of values and loss of moral compass.
The most tragic thing is that we become immune to other people’s suffering and pain, while compassion and solidarity disappear from our lives as supposed relics of a bygone era. Instead of the art of living today we are experiencing the art of survival.
The question is how did human civilization find itself in such a dead end despite all the dark historical lessons and survived disasters? Still, far more important is the question and the answer thereto: What is it that can harmonize and ennoble life again, restore the meaning of ethics, actualize humanity? Everyone who has at least once been a part of this event, from this or the other side of the stage, knows the answer. Who else but the artists and what else but the creative, the spiritual and the beautiful? Or, as Andre Breton says, “the poetic or artistic embrace, as well as the physical, while it lasts, obstructs any view of the misery of the world”.
Therefore, let us be constantly with art, of course, not as an escape from life, but, on the contrary, as a powerful tool that will allow us the art of living.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Thanks to the most renowned cultural event in our country – the “Ohrid Summer” Festival, we have been witnessing extraordinary performances by internationally recognized and famous artists for more than six decades. It is of particular importance that the best Macedonian musical and theater artists whose creations are well known to the domestic and international audience are also part of the program of the Ohrid Summer Festival.
Finally, after two years in which the pandemic prevented the real festival atmosphere and affected the festival program, the Ohrid Summer Festival, with its quality offer of musical and stage events, comes back again in a dignified way that only befits it.
We are grateful to the artists who give meaning to our existence. May we enjoy the art, the noble and the beautiful!
With this thought, I declare the 62nd edition of the Ohrid Summer Festival open.
Thank you.
