REFUGEES Georgi Licovsky and Marko Risovik

Centre Cultural La Nau, Sala Oberta and Claustre

Opening Hours:	Tuesday through Friday, from 10:00 to 14:00 and from 16:00 to 20:00. Sundays and public holidays, from 10:00 to 14:00. Closed on Mondays. AUGUST: From Tuesday to Sunday, from 10:00 to 14:00. Closed on Mondays.
	Free entry

This picture has been chosen by UNICEF as 2015 Photo of the Year. © Georgi Licovsky

Organised by:	Photon Festival Centre Cultural La Nau de la Universitat de València
Sponsors:	Fundación Cañada Blanch Olleros Abogados
Collaborates:	Fujifilm La Imprenta Ideal Room
Curator:	Tania Castro

“We were sleeping one night and, around six in the morning, a bombing took place at a military centre located around seven kilometres away from my house. We woke up suddenly not knowing what was going on, with the whole building trembling, as if there was a earthquake. That was the day we decided to leave. We did not consider our house or our money, only my wife’s and son’s lives were relevant".

Jan Casbar (40 years old), Christian Syrian.

© Georgi Licovsky

Leave immediately. A blanket, a backpack, some savings, some clothes. Fill your pockets with memories, the lightest ones. Take the kid from the crib without knowing when you will be able to feed him again. Close your home’s door for the last time. Put him on a boat or a train clung to the hope of being taken somewhere where life does exist. Knowing he will die because of the bombs, hope is shaped as a doubt: will he get to see the other side? The other side of the fences.

© Marko Risovik

Europe is living the greatest human drama since World War II. Millions of people cross the continent seeking for asylum and running away from war. In this exhibition, PhotOn Festival shows the situation of refugees who migrate using the Balkans Route through the eyes of local photojournalists Gjorgi Likovsky and Marco Risovnik who co-habit -day by day- with the reality taking place beside their homes. In ‘Refugees’, PhotOn Festival deepens into reality by getting closer to the most human of its sides: the grief of families, the long walks, detentions, hunger, exhaustion and hope.

© Marko Risovik

Georgi Licovsky's BIO

1964. Bitola, Macedònia

My beginnings are linked to wedding photography, which was very profitable, but after a short period, I decided to try photojournalism as I considered it an attractive challenge for me.

Two years later, war spread along the territories of former Yugoslavia. Macedonia was becoming an independent country for the first time in their history. It was a privilege to take pictures since the creation of the country; me and my camera witnessed all the events which were taking place during those uncomfortable moments.

The departure of Yugoslavian soldiers from Macedonian territory caused great tensions and the war could be felt in the air. I was one of the few people taking pictures of the YPA (Yugoslav National Army). This event changed my career forever after meeting photographers from agencies EPA and AFT in search of images.

The following was the war in Macedonia in 2001, very emotive for me, but I already had enough experience and my own point of view as a photographer, so I could face all the challenges during the conflict. From a professional point of view, I did well, but I was emotionally devastated.

I soon started to be a part of EPA’s team of sports photographers, so I started travelling around the world covering European football, basketball and handball championships. It was there were I found the real reason for my career: taking pictures of young, happy and healthy people. There was no violence, everything was organised, had controlled conditions and my pictures were widely published in the media. I kept on coveringnews, but behind the media, I just covered everything which was going on in Macedonia and its surroundings.

Since April this year, I found myself with a new good story, that of the immigrants crossing Macedonia in search of a better life. European and American media did not pay much attention to this; my heart and soul were devastated when seeing another Exodus. As time went by, the story kept on growing, the images kept on becoming more startling, the interest kept on growing. At this point, I did not care much about the news shared in the world’s most important media; they were not as important as capturing and showing human suffering, those people’s suffering and showing the world how horrible these events were. My objective was to help people people with my daily deliveries on what was happening, in order to raise consciousness of powerful men by showing the explicit, that which reflects the real daily struggle of refugees seeking for a better life.

Time will say if we were successful on our efforts, not only to inform, but also to help.

Marko Risovik's BIO

Marko felt attracted to photography for the first time during his youth. After years experimenting, he discovered the narrative power of photography as a socially-engaged communication language. During six years, he worked as a graphic journalist in different media in Serbia. Recently, he changed his interest for long-term projects for aspects of social reality. World Press Photo selected him to participate in a master’s class for young photographers in South East Europe in 2010. His work received recognition of important organisation. Some of these awards are the following: Press Photo Serbia - Photo of the year 2012, followed by other six Press Photo Serbia wards in different categories between 2010 and 2013, Status magazine award for best photography in Serbian media in 2010, Beta photo agency special award for sports... Marko's work was published in different regional and international magazines and web editions, and presented in over fifty exhibitions. He is regular contributor to National Geographic Serbia magazine.