The concert of French music, ‘walk through Paris’, workshop for children, film screenings, professional guidance – citizens of Novi Sad will have a chance to see numerous interesting accompanying programmes within the exhibition of works by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec in the Svilara Cultural Station this week.

The interest in Lautrec’s work is constantly increasing. During the first five days, more than a thousand people visited Svilara. In addition to his works, accompanying programme attracted the audience.

The second week of the exhibition starts with the sounds of ‘gypsy jazz’ played by the ‘French Jazz’ band. Their performance is scheduled for 9 July at 8:30 p.m. The trio consists of two performers from Novi Sad and one from France – three great musicians who have worked in the field of music for 20 years.  Each of them has his own career within numerous bands, and now they put together their knowledge and love towards music and made melodies that will take all visitors of Svilara on a trip to France.

The youngest will have a chance to participate in the ‘Oh la la…..the Wonderful France’ workshop on Wednesday, 10 July. During the workshop, children will be able to see the technique of making the collage on the topic of France The film screening of ‘Seven Years of Accident’ silent movie is scheduled for the same day, at 20:21 (8:21 p.m.).

Strolling among Lautrec’s work and Paris 

The second professional guidance through the exhibition will be organised on Saturday, 13 July, and this time, the topic will be ‘The Other Side of Embellished Reality’. The curator will be Nikola Ivanović, art historian from the Gallery of Matica Srpska, and professional guidance will start at 20:21 (8:21 p.m.).

We can see from Lautrec’s works that he was honest and realistic, without trying to embellish the reality. His artistic world presents people and spaces, which are presented without any racial, gender and class boundaries. His clowns, dancers, alcoholics, distinguished gentlemen, ladies with dubious morals raise a question of double standards of civil society in the world he lived in. Behind the embellished reality, there are the questions about ethics of a modern man and the way he deals with similar phenomenon of other epochs.

The ‘Soul of Montmartre’ lecture will be held at the end of the week, on 14 July at 20:21 (8 p.m.). Dr Sofija Perović – the Sorbonne student and beneficiary of the scholarship of the French Government, will hold a lecture, which was envisaged as a walk through Paris by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec: the audience will find out more about places the artist visited, where he was sipping the absinthe and made the ‘Earthquake’ cocktail, as well as music, dance and theatres, where he was finding his company and inspiration.

The entrance to the exhibition and other programmes is free. The exhibition will last until 20 July.