April 17, 2018 - The Fortress of St Michael in Šibenik is hosting an exceptional collection for the next two months
A beautiful exhibition opened last week in Šibenik: Poetry in Wood, featuring a collection of models of traditional wooden boats of the Croatian Adriatic.
The models were made by Velimir Salamon, a longtime lover of the sea and traditional shipbuilding who dedicated his entire life to the precious Mediterranean boats. Fore decades now, he's been creating intricate drawings and replicas of boats such as the bracera, gajeta, and falkuša, and it's fair to say he's one of the people who have prevented Croatian traditional shipbuilding from sinking into oblivion.
Born in 1945, Salomon graduated from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Shipbuilding in Zagreb, then went on to obtain a doctorate degree. He worked as a professor at his alma mater and at the Faculty of Graphic Arts in Zagreb.
He designed a gajeta falkuša indigenous to Komiža town on Vis island - the first replica of a traditional boat that represented the Croatian maritime heritage at the World Expo in Lisbon and festivals in Venice and Brest. Salamon's knowledge encompasses the entire Adriatic coast: the shipbuilding tradition of Rovinj in Istria, the pasara boat of Mali Lošinj, the trupa and lađa boats of the river Neretva, the gajeta of Betina and Mljet, the galijun of Dubrovnik... the list goes on and on, and we now have a rare opportunity to see his versatile work on display in Šibenik.
The exhibition is a part of a larger project that will also involve a documentary filmed in Salamon's home, and a monography of his work that will be published next year.
Poetry in Wood opened on April 14 at the Fortress of St Michael in Šibenik, and will remain on display until June 15. If you're planning a trip to Dalmatia in the next month or two, you really shouldn't miss this exceptional treat.
Source: Morski / Ljiljana Mihaljević
