Temporary Border. Life and Longing in Zone A (1945–1947)
This exhibition commemorates the 71st anniversary of the creation of the western Slovenian border. It outlines the life in the area of Venezia Giulia before the border was created in 1947, and through the memories of the local population reveals the complex relationships within the region at the time of the Allied Military Government (AMG).
In the two years of Zone A's existence, the ideological battle for victory over Nazism was followed by the national struggle for territory. The antagonism between the two nations involved was worsening and it reduced the issue of Venezia Giulia to two opposing sides – whether the territory would be Italian or Yugoslavian (Slovenian). The memories of that period clearly show an ideological divide and the way the narrators judge specific events. Within the context of reminiscing about the same events, their memories are formed within pre-established national discourses, which have been shaped by interpretations of post-war events on various occasions. At the collective level, these post-war interpretations are integrated into constructs of equating Italians with Fascists and Slovenians with “Slavotitini”, that is with stereotypical views that still persist in the borderland. The hatred that fed on old historical foundations and triggered new waves of violence towards different-minded people was preserved for a long time even after the border had been demarcated.
“Era dura. C’era molto odio. E dopo c’è voluto molto tempo per farlo sparire … o meglio per attenuarlo.” / "It was bad, you know. There was much hatred. And then a lot of time had to pass for that hatred to disappear, or rather, to ease." (I. C., an Italian witness).
In the collective memory, the AMG period denoted a transition from want to prosperity, an end to poverty and the start of a new, post-war life. At the same time, the new temporary allied government introduced new uncertainty, national tensions and violence into the territory, which made it seem that the end of the war had not brought ultimate peace.
Location: Villa Bartolomei
From:
4 Sep 2018
Till:
31 Oct 2020
Author of the exhibition:
dr. Kaja Širok
Design:
Tomaž Perme, Mojca Turk
Coordinator for the Regional Museum Goriški muzej:
Matic Volarič
Participating partners:
Društvo Pro Museo Palmanova, Goriška knjižnica F. Bevka, Pokrajinski arhiv v Novi Gorici, Kinoatelje, Slovenski filmski arhiv pri Arhivu Republike, Mestna občina Nova Gorica
Educational programme for the Regional Museum Goriški muzej:
David Kožuh