The Romanian Cultural Institute in Tel Aviv in cooperation with the Czech Centre Tel Aviv, Embassy of the Czech Republic, The Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Israel and the Polish Institute are proud to present the first edition of Gypsy Fest, as part of the Jaffa Fest 2019. The Gypsy Fest will be dedicated to music, cinema and photography and will take place on 13th of June, 2019, starting with 19:00 hours, at the Hasimta Theatre in Jaffa (8 Mazal Dagim St.). The visitors can look forward to musical performance of the Jan Fečo Jazz Band and the pianist Miroslav Rác, along with the screening of the movie Papusza and photo exhibitions – Roma, always (Romania), Black Hearts (Czech Republic).
Free entrance to the exhibitions and film screening starting at 19:00 hours.
For the concert on June 13 at 21:00, tickets can be purchased at Hasimta Theatre, telephone: 03-6812126.
Photo exhibition Roma, always
by Mugur Vărzariu (Romania)
13 – 30.06.2019
Jaffa Fest
Hasimta
Theatre
8 Mazal
Dagim St., Tel Aviv-Yafo
Mugur Vărzariu, a documentary photographer, advocate of change, human rights defender and World Vision ambassador, was born in Bucharest in 1970. After working for more than fifteen years as a marketing strategist before he decided to dedicate himself to social work and documentary photography. He chose photography and due to his ambition and dedication in less than a year his work has been internationally recognized and he became a stringer for some of the most important press agencies (Associated Press and Getty Images).
Photography became a new means of expressing his social artistry. A frequent speaker on a various social topics, Vărzariu constantly tries to change people’s mind-sets and to provide the younger generation with a model for civic involvement and responsibility. With good light inside the soul and outside in his photographs, Vărzariu, as a true advocate of change, hopes his images will highlight important human issues and persuade the viewers to step in and offer practical help to those in need.
He is especially attached to the Roma people’s cause and he hopes that one day, his work, from images to public speeches and presentations, will help end the plight of the Roma people. UNHCR, UNICEF (Romania and Switzerland), Open Society and Amnesty International already used and commissioned his work on Roma people. His voluntary social work for the benefit of various disadvantaged groups has brought him international recognition and a reputation as a defender of human rights. As a direct result of his involvement, thousands of people have been saved from forced evictions.
“We claim we want to help when all we do is to run from one story to another…I say, let’s be redundant for a while and stay on the stories next to us until we really start seeing improvements. There are many stories that need our long term commitment. I choose to tell the story of the Roma people for it’s a story more relevant today in Europe than it ever was. Respecting the rights of the Roma people is something each of us can help others do. It’s not easy and it involves Romanians and Europeans alike”. Mugur Vărzariu (www.mugurvarzariu.com)
