Prevodi Prevedel: Kristjan Radikovič
Marija Ahačič Pollak: Being Abroad Forces You to Survive Fotografije: Osebni arhiv M. A. P. Marija Ahačič Pollak is a kind and neat lady who makes a strong impression anywhere she goes. Although she lives in Canada, she is a conscious Slovenian and never forgets her roots. Without expecting to be paid for it she dedicates all of her leisure time to Slovenia and her Slovenian identity. There aren’t many people deserving of such an extensive presentation in the central medium for Slovenians leaving abroad. Recently, Marija Ahačič Pollak has published her second book entitled Tečejo, tečejo nitke which describes her life story that was greatly characterized by music. Last year at the Welcome home event in Škofja Loka she performed her hit Murke together with the Sašo Avsenik ensemble and left us dumbstruck… As she always does when singing “her” song. In the interview she stated that: “despite the good life I led back when I sang for Avsenik, my husband and I soon realized that there was no future for my husband in the former Yugoslavia. He was labeled a capitalist and it showed at every turn.” She says that the nationalization of all property
was the trigger that forced them into moving abroad. Being abroad made her terribly homesick but as she says: “it forces you to survive and quickly find some kind of work, which often includes great renunciation. It is the only way to create a great future.” Marija is vigorously involved in the Slovenian community. She has been working as a volunteer in Toronto for over three decades and is still the producer at the Canadian-Slovenian Radio Glas. Aside from that she is also the artistic director of the vocal group Plamen which she is very proud of. Ever since 1966, Marija Ahačič Pollak has been visiting Slovenia on a yearly basis. “At first I just came to visit my parents, but now I return to see my relatives, old friends and the beautiful nature. I enjoy the beauties you don’t even notice at home.” She has pleasant memories of her collaboration with the Avseniki ensemble and admits that Murke has paved the way for both her musical career and her life.•
Alexander Mann – The “Thin King” of Slovenian Carinthia Fotografija: osebni arhiv A. M.
Alexander Mann is a sole proprietor and an innovator who with his unique furniture made of thin but durable cardboard conquers different investors and markets. The Carinthian Slovenian is torn between Klagenfurt, Slovenia, Italy, Berlin and the USA. He is a citizen of the world who attributes his success to networking, cooperation abroad and thinking big. His father comes from Berlin and his mother is a Carinthian Slovenian from Rosental. Even though Alexander was born in Klagenfurt, his family spent the first few years of his life in Germany. Afterwards, they returned to Carinthia where Alexander went to bilingual elementary and secondary schools. Later he enrolled in the College for Economic Professions in St. Peter. Following his matura exams, he served in military service in Austria and then departed to Burgenland, namely to Eisenstadt, where he studied international economics with emphasis on the countries of Southeast Europe. When he finished his studies he established his own company which helped other
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companies from Souteast Europe penetrate into the Austrian market. He says that he used to work as a project manager at the Slovenian Economic Association in Klagenfurt, where he worked on an international EU project Future Ideas Karawanks. The purpose of the project was connecting young enterpreneurs from Slovenia and Austria. Two years ago, however, he restarted his company which manufactures cardboard furniture. Alexander, who thinks ideas themselves aren’t worth anything unless you share them with as many people as possible, says that: “you are successful, if in the morning you wake up with a smile on your face and look forward to each and every day. Money should not be the main reason for success.” Alexander Mann only plans for a few months ahead. In this period of time he plans to move the business to new premises, reorganize work and finish the preparations for launcing our trademark The ThinKing.•
Patronage (Private Investments in Culture – In Times of Crisis and Heyday) “In a hundred years nobody will know what my main business activity was, but I am sure that I will be popular as one of the founders of the Stanislav Škrabec Fund.” These are the words of Janez Škrabec, a businessman and the first recipient of the Patron of the Year 2010 award which was given by the Finance newspaper. But what is truly the answer to the most significant question of patronage, donorshipw, sponsorship or private investments in society in general – why? Why would someone invest in culture, society and common good?
studies, eased many a social hardship, fed the hungry, supported the counstruction of different schools and orphanages, and financed various Slovenian clubs to enable their ongoing activities. The perfect example of such a patron was Žiga Zois, a charismatic persona who not only supported the intellectual but also offered them spiritual guidance and contributed to their social awareness. His role, along with those of the other thirty-six patrons listed in the Slovenian Wikipedia, is simply priceless.
Slovenia is not known for ever having a strong patronage network, since patronage is historically associated with wealthy individuals and families. Nonetheless, there were patrons in Slovenia whose importance was proportional to their rarity. They enabled young people to finish their
After the shameful but clearly present tradition of patronage was terminated on our soil following World War II – socialism deemed the state to be the only possible patron – in wasn’t until the independence of Slovenia in 1991 that the basic conditions for different forms of private investments
in culture were met again. Patronage, in various forms, is now no longer questionable or prohibited, but this is not enough to encourage private investments in culture and society in general. Today there are more possibilities and methods for making private investments in culture than ever before: from crowdfunding, anonymous funding, to country funding (the country is still the most important cultural patron) and highly aware individual patrons. As businessman and patron Janez Škrabec explains, these individual patrons will be remembered primarily for their greatness, cosmopolitanism and sophistication. They pave the way independent from any specific economy, except the the economy of values as such: consciousness, creativity, spiritual freedom and working for the common good.•
The Draughty Canal Valley Fotografija: Andrej Blatnik
The Canal Valley (Kanalska dolina in Slovenian and Val Canale in Italian) is true to its name. The narrow valley surrounded by Carnian Alps on the north and Julian Alps on the south is overflowe not just by the river Fella but also by the railways, motorways and highways winding through the bottom of the valley, vanishing in the tunnels, reemerging, crossing bridges and eachothers’ routes without any disturbances in the traffic. Due to the fluidity of traffic it provides, the Canal Valley has always been an important passage between the Mediterranean and Central Europe. It enables the crossing of the Southeastern Alps without having to climb any tall mountain passes. This way the Canal Valley maintains the fluidity of traffic during the winter, when the weather brings a lot of snow that can hold for long periods of time. The heavy traffic flowing through the Canal Valley, however, doesn’t reward the inhabitants of the area with anything else but noise and octane fumes. They are left pondering how to lure the passing travelers off the arterial roads, make them stop for a moment, look around themselves and finally see where they’re actually driving. If they only took the time, they would have a lot to see.
spent more than 20 minutes in the valley. They took advantage of the taverns and inns, where they could rest and regain their strengths to carry on the journey ahead of them. Slovenians aren’t entirely ufamiliar with the area. The marketplace in Tarvisio used to be quite frequented in the times of Yugoslavia. Skiers from Slovenia and Austria also know the area because of the Monte Lussari (Svete Višarje) ski resort, although the place it is more popular as
a pilgrimage route. The Canal Valley itself might look like a traffic channel at first sight, but the villages scattered througought the valley hide countless attractions, such as the many barracks and guardhouses in the area. Many of them are considered monuments but are, sadly, deserted. We can only hope that the local economy will be able to harness their potential, be it for the purpose of tourism – which seems the most realistic – or other purposes.•
Due to the geographic position and the vast natural potential, the Canal valley was already important long ago in history. However, the traffic back then did not travel at 130 kmph or more, so travellers Moja Slovenija
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