The President of Montenegro Jakov Milatović received the theater director Ana Vukotić and the writer Ognjen Spahić at the Cetinje Residence on the occasion of Njegoš Day, a holiday of Montenegrin culture, and on that occasion awarded them with the Order of the Montenegrin Flag of the first degree, which is awarded for special services to Montenegro.
Presenting them with awards, Milatović pointed out that in this way, on behalf of the state, he wants to express respect and gratitude for their creative work that contributed to the development of the Montenegrin cultural scene.
"It is no coincidence that the first artists I distinguished belong to the middle generation, and at the same time they are the youngest artists who received this state award. I want to clearly indicate that for the affirmation and recognition of creators it is not necessary to wait for their old age, especially not when, as in Ana's and Ognje's case, their work was confirmed as valuable," said Milatović.
He reminded that the twenty-year anniversary of Ana Vukotić's graduation play "The Beauty Queen", which is still performed in the Montenegrin National Theatre, was recently marked, as well as that more than twenty years have passed since the publication of Ognjeno's first collection of short stories and now a cult novel Hansen's children.
"In the meantime, both Ana and Ognjen created an oeuvre that undoubtedly transcends national borders and is classified as contemporary European creativity. Ana's plays were performed on stages throughout the region, from where she most often returned home with awards, and Ognjen's oeuvre consists of books that are especially loved by demanding readers and which have been translated into major world languages," said Milatović.
He thanked them for their work contributing to Montenegrin culture being part of the European cultural body.
During the meeting of Milatović with the laureates, the public relations office of the President of Montenegro, it was stated that it is necessary to systematically work on improving the state of culture and improving the position of artists, especially bearing in mind that culture is the key corrective of a society.
Bonus video:
