"ORJEN COTTAGE - ARCHITECTURAL HERITAGE"

As part of the European Heritage Day, with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Media, the Agency for Development and Protection of Orjen is organizing the event “Orjen cottage – architectural heritage”. Namely, all over the mountain there are remains of the former summer apartments of the inhabitants of Kruševica, Mokrin, Kameny, Žlijeb and Ubal, but there are almost no active katuns anymore, which have been gradually being shut down since the end of World War II. Nevertheless, today katuns throughout Montenegro have found a foothold in the tourist demand for an authentic mountain experience and local, traditional food. Accordingly, it is important to preserve the architectural heritage, the art of construction that has been passed down from generation to generation for centuries, and incorporate it into the new economic motive for the survival of katun.

The public will have the opportunity to see how traditional summer apartments looked and changed, that is, decayed over the past forty years, on Thursday, at 6 p.m., in the area of the Church of St. Jovan na Kamen, where the documentary photography exhibition “Orjenski Katuni” will be held. Through selected photographs by Željko Stačević, the former appearance of some of the summer apartments in Orjen was recorded, while they were still active. They were built extremely simply, today we would say ecologically, from local stone, and covered with rye straw. The exhibition will be opened by the vice-president of the municipality of Herceg Novi, Ivan Otović. Upon completion, a special service with traditional specialties of our hinterland is planned.

In the same area, starting at 7:00 p.m., a panel discussion “Orjen’s katuns – the past in the future” is planned, where meritorious experts from this field will present their own experiences gained in the activities of preserving and revitalizing katuns throughout the country, and trace possible paths for the reconstruction of Orjen’s summer apartments in the current circumstances. Participating in the panel discussion are:

– Architect-conservator Aleksandra Kapetanović, Expeditio-Kotor

– Dr. Veselin Luburić, JU National Parks of Montenegro

– Project manager Ivan Mališić, Regional Development Agency for Bjelasica, Komove and Prokletije

The moderator will be Željko Starćević, in charge of the cultural heritage of the Orjen Nature Park. The panel discussion is open to the public, and in the second part the organizers count on the active participation of the audience with their questions and suggestions.

On Saturday, September 27, as the final part of the event, there will be an educational walking tour to Kruševička katun Vučji do. The gathering is scheduled for 10 a.m. in front of the Info-center of the Orjen Nature Park on Vrbanja, from where we will head to this 3 km distant but easily accessible destination. Once an important and vital katun of the village of Kruševica, today it is an example of folk architecture frozen in time. With professional guidance, visitors will be able to get to know its main features, but also to taste the traditional gastronomic products of this region. The tour lasts about 3 hours in total, participants should have appropriate footwear and clothing for the terrain, and participation is at their own risk. In case of unfavorable weather, the tour is postponed.

Phone/viber for additional information: 069 360 803 (Željko Starčević)