Art and History

Art and History Holidays News Street ArtFebruary 28, 2025February 28, 2025

Festivals in Mostar: A Celebration of Culture, Music, and Tradition

Mostar, one of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s most beautiful and culturally rich cities, is not only famous for its stunning Old Bridge and historical charm but also for its vibrant festival scene. Throughout the year, the city hosts a variety of festivals that celebrate music, film, food, art, and tradition, attracting both locals and international visitors. These events provide a unique opportunity to experience Mostar’s dynamic cultural life while enjoying its breathtaking scenery. Here is a guide to some of the most popular festivals in Mostar that you should not miss.

1. Mostar Summer Festival

One of the biggest and most anticipated events in the city, the Mostar Summer Festival is an annual event that takes place in July and August. This festival offers a diverse program of music, dance, theatre, and street performances, transforming the city into a lively cultural hub.

Highlights:

Live concerts featuring local and international artists
Theatrical performances and open-air cinema
Art exhibitions and street performances
Dance shows and workshops

The festival aims to bring together different cultures and art forms, creating a vibrant atmosphere where people can connect and enjoy the creativity of performers from around the world.

2. Mostar Film Festival

The Mostar Film Festival (MOFF) is one of the most prestigious film events in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Established to celebrate the best in regional and international cinema, the festival focuses on promoting filmmakers from the Balkans, as well as showcasing international cinematic achievements.

Highlights:

Screenings of feature films, short films, and documentaries
Panel discussions with directors and actors
Workshops for aspiring filmmakers
Awards for best performances and productions

MOFF is a must-visit event for film lovers who want to experience the richness of Balkan cinema while enjoying the historical beauty of Mostar.

3. Mostar Street Art Festival

Street art has become an essential part of Mostar’s urban identity, and the Mostar Street Art Festival celebrates the city’s vibrant graffiti and mural scene. This festival brings together street artists from all over the world who transform the city’s walls into open-air galleries.

Highlights:

Live painting sessions by local and international artists
Guided tours of Mostar’s street art scene
Interactive workshops for aspiring artists
Music and dance performances

This festival helps beautify the city while providing a platform for young artists to showcase their creativity.

4. Mostar Blues & Rock Festival

If you’re a fan of blues and rock music, the Mostar Blues & Rock Festival is the perfect event for you. Held every summer, this festival features performances from both well-known and emerging blues and rock artists.

Highlights:

Live performances by international and local bands
Open-air concerts under the stars
Jam sessions and workshops
A great social atmosphere for music lovers

This festival attracts a passionate crowd and offers a laid-back atmosphere where visitors can enjoy world-class music in a stunning setting.

5. Mostar Sevdah Festival

Sevdah music, a deeply emotional and poetic genre unique to Bosnia and Herzegovina, has a special place in Mostar’s cultural heritage. The Mostar Sevdah Festival is dedicated to preserving and promoting this traditional music.

Highlights:

Performances by top Sevdah musicians
Poetry readings and storytelling sessions
Lectures on the history and significance of Sevdah music
Community gatherings celebrating Bosnian culture

This festival is an incredible opportunity to experience the soul of Bosnia’s musical heritage.

6. Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series – Mostar

For adrenaline seekers, the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series in Mostar is an event like no other. Each year, some of the world’s best cliff divers gather to jump from the Stari Most (Old Bridge) into the Neretva River.

Highlights:

Spectacular high dives from a historic bridge
Live commentary and audience engagement
Competitions featuring the world’s top divers
A thrilling atmosphere with thousands of spectators

This event not only showcases athletic excellence but also highlights the city’s stunning architecture and natural beauty.

7. International Festival of Author’s Poetry

For literature lovers, the International Festival of Author’s Poetry brings together poets and writers from around the world to share their works and ideas. The festival celebrates the power of words and their ability to transcend borders.

Highlights:

Poetry readings in beautiful historical locations
Discussions on contemporary literature
Workshops for aspiring poets
Music and artistic performances

This festival fosters cultural exchange and appreciation for literary art in an inspiring setting.

8. Mostar Wine Festival

The Mostar Wine Festival is a paradise for wine lovers, showcasing some of the finest wines from Bosnia and Herzegovina and beyond. The Herzegovina region is known for its excellent wines, and this festival is the perfect place to taste and learn about them.

Highlights:

Wine tastings featuring local and international wineries
Food pairings with traditional Bosnian cuisine
Wine workshops and expert talks
Live music and entertainment

Whether you’re a wine connoisseur or just looking to enjoy a good glass of wine in a scenic setting, this festival is a must-visit.

9. Mostar Carnival

Mostar’s annual carnival is a colourful celebration that brings joy and entertainment to the city. Featuring parades, costumes, and street performances, this festival is a fun-filled experience for all ages.

Highlights:

Costume parades and themed performances
Street entertainers and live music
Family-friendly activities and games
Fireworks and festive celebrations

The carnival showcases the lively spirit of Mostar, making it a fantastic event for visitors of all backgrounds.

Mostar is more than just a historic city—it’s a thriving cultural hub that hosts some of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s most exciting festivals. Whether you’re drawn to music, film, literature, art, or adventure, there’s a festival in Mostar that will captivate you. These events not only showcase the city’s artistic and cultural diversity but also provide a wonderful opportunity to connect with locals and immerse yourself in an unforgettable experience. No matter when you visit, Mostar’s festivals are sure to leave a lasting impression.

Art and History Historical periods in Bosnia and HerzegovinaOctober 15, 2024October 15, 2024

YUGOSLAVIAN SOLDIERS AT THE BEGINNING OF WORLD WAR II

Military operations in World War II in Yugoslavia began on 6 April 1941, when the Kingdom of Yugoslavia was swiftly conquered by Axis forces and partitioned between Germany, Italy, Hungary, Bulgaria and client regimes. Subsequently, a guerrilla liberation war was fought against the Axis occupying forces and their locally established puppet regimes, including the Independent State of Croatia and the Serbian Government of National Salvation, by the KPJ-led republican Yugoslav Partisans. Simultaneously, a multi-sided civil war was waged between the Yugoslav communist Partisans, the Serbian royalist Chetniks, Croatian fascist Ustaše and Home Guard, as well as Slovene Home Guard troops.

We have listed 10 things that each Yugoslavian soldier wore at the beginning of WWII:

1. “Titovka” was a famous green cap characteristic of the Yugoslav Partisans during World War II, and later the Yugoslav People’s Army. It was based on the Russian pilotka, and often had the red star badge on the front. It was named after the Partisan leader and President of Yugoslavia, Marshal Josip Broz Tito.

2.The M35 hand grenade, which was being produced in Kragujevac. Later, partisans have organized their production of these bombs.

3.Weapons that were usually worn by partisans. In the illustration, the Italian rifle “Carcano” M1891 caliber 6.5mm

4.Three-pointed cap popularly called “Triglav cap” to the highest peak in Slovenia. Such as a cap made anti-fascist fighters of the Spanish Civil War and the first Junos Croatian partisans. Since 1944, it replaced the cap “Titovka” a smooth edge.

5.Famous petokraka badge

6.Since August 1943, established the order of partisan medals. The illustration is one of them “partisan star of the first degree” for bravery and merit in combat. The medal was created by sculptor Anthony Augustinčić. Since the summer of 1944 medals were made in the Soviet Union.

7.The first partisan ranks were created in the fall of 1941. Since the beginning of 1942 until the end of 1943 to use the ranks as illustrated. The first is the rank of corporal.7b. Sergeant,7c. Deputy Sergeant company,7d. Company sergeant,7e. The deputy commander of the battalion,
7f. The battalion commander,

7g. Deputy Commander of the detachment,

7h. The commander of the detachment.

8.Yugoslavian combat pack

9.The rifle that was under Belgian license for the “Mauser” M24 were produced for the Yugoslav army in the weapons factory in Uzice in Serbia. The Partisans in 1941, a time occupied the arms factory in Uzice where they produce 21,040 rifles M24, called “partisan” and 2.7 million bullets caliber 7.92mm.

10.Very appreciated partisan weapon German MG34 light machine gun by partisans popularly called “Šarac”. To capture “SARC” might be getting a medal, but for his loss to go to court martial. Among partisans some machine gunners on “SARC” have become legendary.

Art and History PlacesNovember 9, 2020November 9, 2020

The architecture of the Old Bridge in Mostar

The Old Town of Mostar has been attracting millions of tourists from all over the world because of its unique blend of rich history, picturesque architecture and exotic locations. The Old Bridge is the most magnificent monument in Mostar and it has become the worldwide known symbol of Mostar.

Continue reading “The architecture of the Old Bridge in Mostar”

Art and HistoryMay 11, 2017May 11, 2017

Mother’s day

This story originally appeared on history.com

Mother’s Day is a holiday honoring motherhood that is observed in different forms throughout the world. The American incarnation of Mother’s Day was created by Anna Jarvis in 1908 and became an official U.S. holiday in 1914. Jarvis would later denounce the holiday’s commercialization and spent the latter part of her life trying to remove it from the calendar. While dates and celebrations vary, Mother’s Day most commonly falls on the second Sunday in May and traditionally involves presenting mothers with flowers, cards, and other gifts.

HISTORY OF MOTHER’S DAY

Celebrations of mothers and motherhood can be traced back to the ancient Greeks and Romans, who held festivals in honor of the mother goddesses Rhea and Cybele, but the clearest modern precedent for Mother’s Day is the early Christian festival known as “Mothering Sunday.”

Once a major tradition in the United Kingdom and parts of Europe, this celebration fell on the fourth Sunday in Lent and was originally seen as a time when the faithful would return to their “mother church”—the main church in the vicinity of their home—for a special service.

Over time the Mothering Sunday tradition shifted into a more secular holiday, and children would present their mothers with flowers and other tokens of appreciation. This custom eventually faded in popularity before merging with the American Mother’s Day in the 1930s and 1940s.

ANN REEVES JARVIS AND JULIA WARD HOWE

The origins of Mother’s Day as celebrated in the United States date back to the 19th century. In the years before the Civil War, Ann Reeves Jarvis of West Virginia helped start “Mothers’ Day Work Clubs” to teach local women how to properly care for their children.

These clubs later became a unifying force in a region of the country still divided over the Civil War. In 1868 Jarvis organized “Mothers’ Friendship Day,” at which mothers gathered with former Union and Confederate soldiers to promote reconciliation.

Another precursor to Mother’s Day came from the abolitionist and suffragette Julia Ward Howe. In 1870 Howe wrote the “Mother’s Day Proclamation,” a call to action that asked mothers to unite in promoting world peace. In 1873 Howe campaigned for a “Mother’s Peace Day” to be celebrated every June 2.

Other early Mother’s Day pioneers include Juliet Calhoun Blakely, a temperance activist who inspired a local Mother’s Day in Albion, Michigan, in the 1870s. The duo of Mary Towles Sasseen and Frank Hering, meanwhile, both worked to organize a Mothers’ Day in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Some have even called Hering “the father of Mothers’ Day.”

ANNA JARVIS

The official Mother’s Day holiday arose in the 1900s as a result of the efforts of Anna Jarvis, daughter of Ann Reeves Jarvis. Following her mother’s 1905 death, Anna Jarvis conceived of Mother’s Day as a way of honoring the sacrifices mothers made for their children.

After gaining financial backing from a Philadelphia department store owner named John Wanamaker, in May 1908 she organized the first official Mother’s Day celebration at a Methodist church in Grafton, West Virginia. That same day also saw thousands of people attend a Mother’s Day event at one of Wanamaker’s retail stores in Philadelphia.

Following the success of her first Mother’s Day, Jarvis—who remained unmarried and childless her whole life—resolved to see her holiday added to the national calendar. Arguing that American holidays were biased toward male achievements, she started a massive letter writing campaign to newspapers and prominent politicians urging the adoption of a special day honoring motherhood.

By 1912 many states, towns and churches had adopted Mother’s Day as an annual holiday, and Jarvis had established the Mother’s Day International Association to help promote her cause. Her persistence paid off in 1914 when President Woodrow Wilson signed a measure officially establishing the second Sunday in May as Mother’s Day.

JARVIS DECRIES COMMERCIALIZED MOTHER’S DAY

Anna Jarvis had originally conceived of Mother’s Day as a day of personal celebration between mothers and families. Her version of the day involved wearing a white carnation as a badge and visiting one’s mother or attending church services. But once Mother’s Day became a national holiday, it was not long before florists, card companies and other merchants capitalized on its popularity.

While Jarvis had initially worked with the floral industry to help raise Mother’s Day’s profile, by 1920 she had become disgusted with how the holiday had been commercialized. She outwardly denounced the transformation and urged people to stop buying Mother’s Day flowers, cards, and candies.

Jarvis eventually resorted to an open campaign against Mother’s Day profiteers, speaking out against confectioners, florists, and even charities. She also launched countless lawsuits against groups that had used the name “Mother’s Day,” eventually spending most of her personal wealth in legal fees. By the time of her death in 1948 Jarvis had disowned the holiday altogether, and even actively lobbied the government to see it removed from the American calendar.

MOTHER’S DAY AROUND THE WORLD

While versions of Mother’s Day are celebrated worldwide, traditions vary depending on the country. In Thailand, for example, Mother’s Day is always celebrated in August on the birthday of the current queen, Sirikit.

Another alternate observance of Mother’s Day can be found in Ethiopia, where families gather each fall to sing songs and eat a large feast as part of Antrosht, a multi-day celebration honoring motherhood.

In the United States, Mother’s Day continues to be celebrated by presenting mothers and other women with gifts and flowers, and it has become one of the biggest holidays for consumer spending. Families also celebrate by giving mothers a day off from activities like cooking or other household chores.

At times, Mother’s Day has also been a date for launching political or feminist causes. In 1968 Coretta Scott King, wife of Martin Luther King Jr., used Mother’s Day to host a march in support of underprivileged women and children. In the 1970s women’s groups also used the holiday as a time to highlight the need for equal rights and access to childcare.

Art and History Out&AboutApril 28, 2017April 28, 2017

International Workers’ Day

Promoted by the socialists, communists or anarchists 1 May was chosen to be International Workers’ Day in order to celebrate the economic and social achievements of workers. On one hand, 1 May is known for welcoming the spring and for flowers. On the other hand, it is a celebration of laborers.

The date was chosen for International Workers’ Day by a pan-national organization of socialist and communist political parties, to commemorate the Haymarket affair, which occurred in Chicago on 4 May 1886.

How did that happen?

The May 1, 1886, labor action wasn’t just any strike—it was part of what became known as the Haymarket affair. On May 1 of that year, Chicago (along with other cities) was the site of a major union demonstration in support of the eight-hour workday.

Here’s how TIME summed it up in 1938:

A few minutes after ten o’clock on the night of May 4, 1886, a storm began to blow up in Chicago. As the first drops of rain fell, a crowd in Haymarket Square, in the packing house district, began to break up. At eight o’clock there had been 3,000 persons on hand, listening to anarchists denounce the brutality of the police and demand the eight-hour day, but by ten there were only a few hundred. The mayor, who had waited around in expectation of trouble, went home, and went to bed. The last speaker was finishing his talk when a delegation of 180 policemen marched from the station a block away to break up what remained of the meeting. They stopped a short distance from the speaker’s wagon. As a captain ordered the meeting to disperse, and the speaker cried out that it was a peaceable gathering, a bomb exploded in the police ranks. It wounded 67 policemen, of whom seven died. The police opened fire, killing several men and wounding 200, and the Haymarket Tragedy became a part of U. S. history.

In 1889, the International Socialist Conference declared that, in commemoration of the Haymarket affair, May 1 would be an international holiday for labor, now known in many places as International Workers’ Day.

Stand up for your rights-and the rights of all workers!

Why do we celebrate it?

The International Workers Day or May 1 is celebrated to keep an end point for the struggles as well as to promote the requirements of eight hour working day. In earlier days the working time to the laborer is very severe and working hours are nearly 10 to 16 hours in a day also in the unsafe conditions. Deaths, injuries and other unfair conditions in the workers are very quiet common at the workplaces from the 1860’s and working people are very agitated in working throughout the day until the eight hours workday was declared.

This was the main agenda of the workers struggle:

8 HOURS LABOUR;
8 HOURS RECREATION;
8 HOURS REST;

How International Labour Day is celebrated?

International Labor Day is celebrated yearly as an official holiday all over the world- People enjoy celebrating the May Day or Labour Day by arranging the big party and lots of programmes. They decorate the banners and flags using colors just like an Independence Day celebration.

Variety of news and messages are distributed by the TV channels and radio channels saying Happy Labor Day among people to increase social awareness about the Labour Day. Variety of other events is also organized by the International Labour Organization to celebrate the day. The theme of the Labour Day party celebration becomes any cartoon characters, western culture shows, sports, TV shows, movies, holiday activities, crazy fun activities and many more. Other Labor Day activities includes crossword puzzle, anagram puzzle, word search puzzle, code cracker puzzle, word scramble puzzle, phrase matching game puzzle and etc.

This celebration has become a historic significance all over the world and celebrated by the Labor unions worldwide. Variety of demonstrations, speeches, protests processions, rallies and parades are organized by the working group people under the security arrangements to protect violence.

How do we celebrate it in Bosnia and Herzegovina?

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, 1 May is an official holiday at the national level. This day most of people from Bosnia and Herzegovina celebrate by visiting natural parks or resorts with family and friends. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, May is Barbecue month. It is the start of the outdoor cooking season for most of people. Here in Mostar, where we cook outdoors all year long, 1 May is a opportunity to prepare our favorite dishes while enjoying the outdoors with our family mainly on the river Neretva or Buna.