The “Vocations in Stone” project is a collaboration between the organization Cultura Trust (Great Britain) and the Stonemasonry school. The goal of this project is to re-establish the school to be a leading stone carving center in the Balkans, which includes a new progress plan and will be developed with the support of mentors from the Cultura Trust organization.
The introduction of new digital technologies will help the school in attracting students who aspire to international work standards.
Since the number of young students who are interested in learning the manual craft of stonemasonry is continuously decreasing, if actions are not taken in this regard, the long-standing heritage of the School will end, which we constantly warn about. In order to ensure future sustainability, the school needs to expand student enrollment to the entire region of the Balkans.
In order to strengthen the interest in stone carving in the Balkans, the Stonemasonry school’s representatives visited Herceg Novi, a charming little town in Montenegro, which is located on the shore of Boka Kotor. There, in “the Josip Bepo Benković Gallery”, the tenth international exhibition “Stone in Architecture and Art” was held, which originally promotes stone as a material. The exhibition consists of works created in the previous years, and is thematically divided into three groups: Architecture and design in stone, Sculpture in stone and Mosaic in stone.
At the local radio station Radio Television Herceg Novi (show “Waves of Culture”), the Director Tamara Plastić explained the importance of stonemasonry in general and the Stonemasonry School and also warned about the lack of interest among the young in this important craft. She also invited Montenegrin students to think about their future career choice mentioning that the Stonemasonry school gladly accepts students not only from neighboring countries, but also from all over Europe.
You can see the interview on this link, starting at minute 12:30, and we believe that the stonemason’s craft, despite numerous challenges and difficulties, will not be forgotten in the nearest future. We would like to thank the hosts of this beautiful exhibition for their hospitality and good company. The exhibition is open for all those who find themselves in Boka Kotor until June 30, 2022.
Text written by: Josipa Terzić