Among Us Yet Apart. Echoes of Migration in Istria

People have always been on the move. Migrations are part of our collective history, shaping societies, identities, and our sense of belonging. Migrations are ongoing – right here among us. We often fail to understand what the migration experience truly means to those who go through it, because it is often discussed only superficially.

The exhibition explores contemporary immigration from distant regions and the experiences of migration, living, and working in Istria. It addresses forms of mutual solidarity, friendships, and the emergence of new communities, as well as creative strategies of adaptation and belonging, leisure time, practices of care across distance, the materiality of migration, and the construction of a sense of home.

At a subtextual level, the exhibition also points to absences and gaps: the lack of genuine integration, dialogue, understanding, and institutional support, as well as what has been lost or disrupted—family cohabitation, linguistic and cultural barriers, and affective landscapes shaped by displacement. These are the visible and invisible sides of the experiences of many people among us—our new neighbours. 

Through socially engaged museum practice, the exhibition is conceived as an invitation to dialogue, fostering understanding, the acceptance of diversity, cooperation, and social responsibility.

Exhibition production: Ethnographic Museum of Istria
Authors of the exhibition and display: Mario Buletić i Duga Mavrinac
Photography: Dejan Štifanić
Video: Rajko Ban                                          
Exhibition graphic design: Ana Glažar, Studio GLAZAR
Exhibition setup: Dragan Dimovski
Year: 2025
 

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