Осврт кон изложбата „Македонија во 1900 година. Фотографии од научната експедиција на Никодим Павлович Кондаков“
On the exhibition “Macedonia in 1900 Photographs from the scientific expedition of Nikodim P. Kondakov

Summary/Abstract: As part of the commemorative celebrations marking its 75th anniversary in 2025, the “Marko Cepenkov” Institute of Folklore in Skopje organized the exhibition titled “Macedonia in 1900. Photographs from the Scientific Expedition of Nikodim Pavlovich Kondakov”. The exhibition forms part of the project “125 Years since the Scientific Expedition of N. P. Kondakov in Macedonia (1900)”, implemented by “Marko Cepenkov” the Institute of Folklore in Skopje, with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of North Macedonia. The author of the exhibition and its design is Assoc. Prof. Emilija Apostolova Čalovska, PhD, researcher of vernacular architecture at the Department of Traditional Arts and Architecture, “Marko Cepenkov” Institute of Folklore in Skopje. Several colleagues from the Institute, as well as external collaborators, also participated in the realization of the exhibition.The exhibition was installed in both halls of the Art Salon of the Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts (MASA) and was open to visitors from November 12, 2025, to January 31, 2026. The aim of the exhibition is to present to the scholarly and wider public a selection from the collection of archival photographs produced during the scientific research expedition of the Russian Academy of Sciences, led by Academician Nikodim Pavlovich Kondakov, carried out in Macedonia in the summer of 1900. The collection titled “Materials from the Journey of N. P. Kondakov in Macedonia 1900 and on Athos 1898” registered under inventory number 55724, has been preserved since 1924 in the archive of the Institute of the History of Material Culture named after N. Ya. Marr at the Russian Academy of Sciences. A copy of the collection was gifted to the Institute of Folklore in 2003, after which it became an integral part of its rich Archive.This collection represents an invaluable and still highly relevant archive dedicated to the rich cultural heritage of Macedonia and bears witness to its condition in the specific historical and political circumstances at the very end of the 19th century. Alongside efforts toward its digitization and appropriate scholarly processing, in recent years the Institute has worked intensively on promoting and presenting this significant collection of old archival photographs, bringing it closer to the public through thematic exhibitions of selected photographs. The exhibition at the Art Salon of MASA in Skopje represents the culmination of these activities. At the official opening of the exhibition, addresses were delivered by the President of MASA, Academician Żivko Popov; the Director of the “Marko Cepenkov” Institute of Folklore in Skopje, Prof. Zorančo Malinov, PhD; and the exhibition’s author, Assoc. Prof. Emilija Apostolova Čalovska, PhD. On that occasion, a monograph bearing the same title was also promoted, containing the complete photographic collection. The editor of the monograph is Prof. Ermis Lafazanovski, PhD from the “Marko Cepenkov” Institute of Folklore in Skopje and its authors include Prof. Biljana Ristovska-Josifovska, PhD (Institute of National History), Prof. Jasminka Ristovska Piličkova, PhD and Assoc. Prof. Emilija Apostolova Čalovska, PhD, from “Marko Cepenkov” Institute of Folklore in Skopje, as well as Prof. Sašo Cvetkovski, PhD, corresponding member of MASA, who also served as promoter of the monograph.The exhibition opening and monograph promotion were attended by numerous guests: representatives of MASA, the academic community and scientific public, the Macedonian Orthodox Church – Ohrid Archbishopric, representatives of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, museums, professional institutions for the protection of cultural heritage, as well as members of the broader public. Interest in the exhibition continued throughout the period it was open to visitors, as a rare opportunity to view this exceptional archival photographic collection and to experience Macedonia at a specific moment in its rich and turbulent past.

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