GENIUS LOCI

JL – I have always seen the fact that I spent my youth in the town of Koper-Capodistria, whose roots go back to ancient Greek times, later Rome and Venice as a unique piece of luck. Koper has always been at the crossroads between Mediterranean and Central European cultures, and both left a decisive mark on me.

JL – “… The palaces surrounding the Square prevent me from seeing the sea waves lapping against the shore, but the breeze and smell from the small port not far away do not allow me to forget that I am on an island in the middle of the bay. I can recognize the silhouettes of people and birds. Human speech and the raspy voices of birds override each other and the eruption of the immense pallet of colours gives me a soothing feeling of everyday Mediterranean life.”

The town of Koper-Capodistria in 1589 (collection Koper Provincial Museum). Koper has had different names throughout history: Egida (ancient Greece), Capris (ancient Rome), and Justinopolis (Byzantium). The name Capodistria is of Italian origin and Koper is Slavic.

ART AND CREATIVITY

Jadran Lenarčič was born in 1955, he attended elementary school and gymnasium in Koper. Although he was already involved in painting from a young age, he decided to study electrical engineering at the Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Ljubljana, where he received his bachelor’s, masters and doctorate degrees. After his studies, he decided to pursue a professional career as a scientist in the field of robotics, but at the same time, he was also involved in the arts. In 2000, he was admitted to the Slovenian Association of Fine Arts. His role in setting up and establishing the Jožef Stefan Institute Gallery is also decisive. He perceives his involvement in arts as his lifestyle, in which there is no border between art and science. Solo art exhibitions:

1999 – Emerging paintings, “Jožef Stefan” Institute Gallery, Ljubljana, Slovenia;
text by Tatjana Pregl Kobe
2000 – Courtyards and squares, Meduza, Piran, Slovenia;
text by Tatjana Pregl Kobe
2000 – Painting Exhibition, Krka Strunjan Gallery, Strunjan, Slovenia;
text by Nives Marvin
2004 – More Myself, Monument Conservation Center Gallery, Ljubljana, Slovenia;
text by Judita Krivec Dragan
2007 – It Is All One Painting, Krka Gallery, Ljubljana, Slovenia;
text by Tatjana Pregl Kobe
2007 – Exhibition of Paintings, Gorenje Exhibition Center, Velenje, Slovenia
2008 – Graz Department of Cultural Affairs, Airport Gallery, Graz, Austria
2008 – Exhibition of Paintings, Slovenian Scientific Institute in Vienna, Austria

JL – At the Conference, I gathered more than one hundred participants and wanted to bridge artists and scientists. I tried to encourage a creative dialogue, but it didn’t happen. I thought that the different worlds of science and art would spontaneously recognize the meaning of a common field of research and creation. I expected to see a fusion of differences. But I realized that fusion is possible only in the case of radical collaboration when the boundaries between the individuals are demolished. It turns out that the vast majority of scientists and artists are reticent about being completely open.