1/26/2026
Exclusive exhibition by painter Pavel Hajko at the PTT Museum until Feb. 23
The 88th solo exhibition "A Good Voice is Heard Far Away" by Pavel Hajko, the most prominent contemporary naive painter from Kovačica, opened at the PTT Museum in Belgrade. The opening ceremony was attended by the Ambassador of the Slovak Republic to Serbia Michal Pavuk, Director Vladimir Dimitrijević, on behalf of the Acting Director of Pošta Srbije Zoran Anđelković, and the author Pavel Hajko.
H.E. Ambassador Pavuk emphasized that the naive art of Kovačica is inextricably linked to the Slovaks in Vojvodina, who, while preserving their language, customs and identity, have created an authentic artistic expression that has gone from local to universal. In this way, as he said, they have been contributing to the spread of the good name of Slovakia and Serbia for decades.
He emphasized that Pavel Hajko is an artist who remains faithful to tradition, but at the same time enriches it with personal sensibility and recognizable expression. "It is precisely artists like Pavel Hajko who give full meaning to the inscription of the Kovačica naive art on the UNESCO list of representative intangible cultural heritage, because they confirm that this art is not a finished story, but a living tradition that continues to develop, breathe and inspire today", concluded Ambassador Pavuk.
Director Vladimir Dimitrijević thanked the author and all participants in the project. He emphasized that the cooperation with the Embassy of Slovakia is at a very good level and reminded that in the past two years, Pošta Srbije has marked the achievements of naive painting from Kovačica in several symbolic ways, in the form of issuing commemorative postage stamps in honour of Zuzana Chalupová and Martin Jonáš, while eight contemporary Kovačica painters have already exhibited at the PTT Museum.
"The socially responsible orientation and permanent commitment of Pošta Srbije is continuous support for cultural programmes, initiatives, projects and activities that promote, connect and encourage cultural cooperation, rapprochement and better understanding between nations, cultures, artists, cities and countries", emphasized Director Vladimir Dimitrijević.
Author Pavel Hajko thanked the participants, organizers, Ambassador Pavuk and Director Dimitrijević, as well as his wife, for organizing the exhibition. He emphasized that he is not one of those painters who talk much, and that he will tell the guests more about his creative work during the tour.
The exhibition presents 20 oil paintings on canvas from the author's rich artistic oeuvre, two works of capital dimensions 200x270cm, Winter and Summer, and others, including The Last Journey, Grape Harvest, Winter Morning, Rooster on a Pumpkin, Field Works, The Lover, Spring.
The musical part of the program featured the postmaster of Kovačica post office, Helena Mužinić, with the song "Aka to Ruža trojaka" and the postman Pavel Hološ from the Padina post office, with the songs "Ide poštar ide" and "Keđ v tej naše krčme hudba hrala", accompanied by professor of history and musical culture Vladmir Halaj on the accordion.
The exhibition "A Good Voice Is Heard Far Away", which runs at the PTT Museum until February 23, was realized in cooperation with Pošta Srbije and the Babka Foundation from Kovačica.
In continuation of the Babka Foundation project, the exhibition will also be shown at Slovenská Pošta, and then at the UNESCO Palace in Paris on December 3, 2026, while activities will continue until 2028, when the 100th anniversary of the first exhibition of naive painting in Paris, in 1928, is celebrated.