Photo: Office of the President of the Republic of Slovenia
Visit at the Smithsonian Institution and National Geographic
At the initiative of the Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia in the United States, the spouse of the President visited the Smithsonian Institution and National Geographic during his stay in Washington.
Publish date Washington D.C., USA,
Dr. Aleš Musar met with the leadership of the Smithsonian Institution, the world’s largest museum complex, which in Washington alone comprises 21 museums and galleries. He spoke about successful presentations of Slovenian cultural heritage both at home and abroad. He highlighted the outstanding exhibition “Tweets from the Past” (“Čivki iz preteklosti”), prepared under the leadership of the National Museum of Slovenia in cooperation with ten Slovenian museums, currently on display at Cankarjev dom. Through the stories of more than 100 objects, the exhibition reveals fascinating details from Slovenia’s history and the people who lived in its territory. The hosts were particularly interested in the world’s oldest musical instrument—the Neanderthal flute discovered in the Divje Babe Cave.
The Embassy of the Republic of Slovenia in the United States will continue discussions on the possibility of hosting an exhibition that would present Slovenian cultural heritage to the American public.
National Geographic, a renowned organization dedicated to preserving the world’s natural heritage, is preparing to open a new museum and educational center that will be highly interactive and equipped with the latest technology. On the very day of Dr. Musar’s visit, when Director Jill Tiefenthaler and her team presented the museum under construction, the official opening date—June 26—was announced, just ahead of the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Declaration of Independence.
A special connection between Slovenia and National Geographic is represented by outstanding Slovenian photographers. The permanent exhibition in the new museum includes a photograph of an ice cone from the Ladakh region by Ciril Jazbec. A photograph by Arne Hodalič appears on the cover of the latest global edition of National Geographic. The article on the discovery of a Byzantine shipwreck features numerous photographs by Hodalič and Katja Bidovec, and his work has been published in the magazine many times before. Dr. Musar presented the Director of National Geographic with a photograph by Marko Turk—a detail of Jože Plečnik’s decoration of the Križanke complex—while he received in return a photograph from the National Geographic archives dating from 1930, depicting a scene from the Slovenian countryside.
