Diplomatic visit to the 5th weavers’ colony in Stapar

5th weavers’ colony was officially opened at the Cultural Center in Stapar, aiming to preserve the cultural heritage of Vojvodina and revitalize authentic local brands, such as Stapar kilims.

The colony was visited by H.E Thomas Schieb, Ambassador of the Republic of Germany to Belgrade, and H.E Koen Adam, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium with their spouses, Consul General of the Republic of Croatia to the Republic of Serbia Velimir Plesa, Minister of Agriculture for Water Management and Forestry in the Government of the Republic of Serbia Branislav Nedimovic, Ethno Network President and NALED Director Violeta Jovanovic and Sombor Mayor Dusanka Golubovic.

              Our goal was to preserve the cultural heritage of the City of Sombor. The tradition of Stapar’s kilim weaving is the tradition of the Serbian people in a multiethnic and multinational environment such as the City of Sombor with more than 20 national communities. In this 5th weavers’ colony we can summarize the results and say that we not only achieved our goals, we completed more than we expected,” said the Mayor of Sombor Dusanka Golubovic.

              Since last years colony, we are making progress and on Friday, the Vojvodina Salon was opened in the government building in Novi Sad, with the display of designed handicrafts and authentic motifs that embelish the conference room in which President Mirovic holds VIP meetings with foreign officials. Today we are celebrating a small anniversary because it’s that we gather in Stapar for the 5th time, driven by the common goal of preserving our countrys cultural heritage and reviving authentic brands that make us proud in the world, and above all Stapar kilims as an indigenous element of Vojvodinas area and identity,” said Jovanovic.


              We have neither oil nor gold, and we have no sea. We have no choice but to turn to our home-made food and our traditional values. One of the things that fall in this category are Stapar kilims that make this event very important. I would like to thank all the women who work on making these pieces and who return to some of the values ​​that we have been pushing away for many years. I can only promise that the Ministry of Agriculture will support such steps”, said the Minister of Agriculture of Water Management and Forestry in the Government of the Republic of Serbia Branislav Nedimovic.

Thomas Schieb, German Ambassador to Belgrade thanked NALLED for inviting the Embassy to step in as a patron of such an event, especially given that craftsmanship in Germany has a long tradition.

              We greatly appreciate this work because we know how much effort and time it takes to create such wonderful objects, including these wonderful kilims. In Germany just like in Serbia, very few people are involved in this business, and most of them are women who do so to earn some income. Visiting this colony, I have to admit that I was impressed with the works and kilims created in this colony” said H.E. Thomas Schieb, German Ambassador to Belgrade.

The colonies in Stapar and Stara Planina are part of the programs organized by Ethno Network and NALED, in cooperation with the cities of Sombor and Pirot, with the support of US and German embassies, with the aim of preserving cultural heritage, skills in traditional crafts and supporting the employment of female artisans. As part of the visit to Stapar, the Mayor of Sombor hosted representatives of the diplomatic corps in the magnificent city hall, where they were presented one of the largest oil paintings in Serbia portraying the Battle of Senta, after which they visited the house where the Sombor painter Sava Stojkov lived and worked.

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