The exhibition “Una vita per il balletto/Hommage à Jelko Yuresha/Life for Ballet” includes more than 50 copies of ballet costumes and accessories, photographs, and paintings and is a continuation of many years of cooperation between the Museum of Arts and Crafts and the Croatian Community in Trieste to promote Croatian art and cultural heritage in collaboration with the City of Trieste
The exhibition “Una vita per il balletto/Hommage à Jelko Yuresha/Life for Ballet” includes more than 50 copies of ballet costumes and accessories, photographs, and paintings and is a continuation of many years of cooperation between the Museum of Arts and Crafts and the Croatian Community in Trieste to promote Croatian art and cultural heritage in collaboration with the City of Trieste year’s first exhibition of the Museum of Arts and Crafts opened at the Carlo Schmidl Museum in Trieste on March 3, 2022, and is dedicated to the great donor and ballet artist Jelko Yuresha. The exhibition consists of the donation of the ballet collection — costumes, memorabilia, photographs, and posters
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“This collection and donation has a special significance for our Museum because it strengthened the theatrical line-up that existed in the Museum, but was not large enough,” said Miroslav Gašparovic, director of the Zagreb Museum of Arts and Crafts (MUO) in Trieste.
Costumes from the world of opera and drama arrived from all over the world for the permanent exhibition of the Carlo Schmidl City Theater Museum, and Gašparović thanked the Trieste authorities for the opportunity to show Yuresha’s collection in the international form in the theater museum. He also expressed hope that this would be an incentive for Croatia and the City of Zagreb to “finally” build a museum of theater and music.
Gašparović, who is also the curator of the exhibition Hommage à Jelko Yuresha/ Life for Ballet, said that they started preparing the exhibition with Yuresha who was looking forward to the exhibition being held in Trieste, a city that had sentimental significance for him. Yuresha last performed on the stage of the Verdi Theater in Trieste with his wife Belinda Wright.
During the preparation of the exhibition, there was a pandemic and earthquake in Zagreb that severely damaged MUO, so the exhibition is not only a homage to Yuresha, who died on July 8, 2020, but also became the first exhibition titled MUO u gostima (“MUO is paying a visit”) organized by the Museum since January 1 when it was closed due to preparations for reconstruction, Gašparovic explained.
Furthermore, the exhibition marks the 140th anniversary of the MUO exhibition in Trieste, he added.
Director of the Croatian Community in Trieste Gian Carlo Damir Murković said that the exhibition was especially important for them because it represented Croatian tradition, heritage, and culture.
The head of culture of the City of Trieste, Giorgio Rossi, pointed out that the exhibition is an important opportunity for their museum to expand its cultural offer and confirm the cooperation between Trieste and Croatian museums.
The daughter of Jelka and Belinda, Annabel Yuresha, pointed out at the conference that she had known that her father collected costumes and memorabilia, but she had not been aware of how much he had owned until he revealed to her that MUO would exhibit them. She reminded everyone that his whole life had been dancing, theater and beauty.
Yuresha pointed out in the film that his childhood was marked by World War II, which is why he developed a passion for beauty to escape the horrors of war.
Ballet dancer and choreographer Jelko Yuresha (Zagreb, 1937 – Zurich 2020) studied his first ballet steps in his native Zagreb, and continued his education at the International Ballet School of Ana Roja and Oskar Harmoš in Kaštel Kambelovac.
He continued his education in England where he met his future wife Belinda Wright, one of Britain’s leading ballerinas. As champions of the London Ballet Festival, today’s English National Ballet, Wright and Yuresha have danced leading roles on numerous British stages and on tours in European and Latin American cities.
They have achieved a number of notable independent roles, but also joint performances in leading roles in classical ballets such as Giselle, Sleeping Beauty, Nutcracker, and Swan Lake. After leaving the Royal Ballet, in collaboration with the British Council, they performed as British Government Ballet Ambassadors around the world.
The exhibition “Una vita per il balletto/Hommage à Jelko Yuresha/Life for Ballet” includes more than 50 ballet costumes and accessories, photographs and paintings and is a continuation of many years of cooperation between the Museum of Arts and Crafts and the Croatian Community in Trieste to promote Croatian art and cultural heritage in collaboration with the City of Trieste.
The exhibition was announced at a press conference and was opened by the Ambassador of the Republic of Croatia to Italy, Jasen Mesić. The exhibition remains open until May 1, and the curators are Miroslav Gašparović and Stefano Bianchi. On behalf of the Croatian Heritage Foundation, Ivana Rora attended the opening of the exhibition.
Text and photos: Source Hina
Lead The exhibition “Una vita per il balletto/Hommage à Jelko Yuresha/Life for Ballet” includes more than 50 copies of ballet costumes and accessories, photographs, and paintings and is a continuation of many years of cooperation between the Museum of Arts and Crafts and the Croatian Community in Trieste to promote Croatian art and cultural heritage in collaboration with the City of Trieste