Poetry Expo 26
/ 9 February 2026
Echo of the Centuries: From Kurbinovo to Modern Italy
Poetry Expo 2026
Echo of the Centuries: From Kurbinovo to Modern Italy is a poetic and visual dialogue between past and present. Inspired by the sacred frescoes of the 12th-century church of St. George in Kurbinovo, this project reimagines their timeless beauty through photography, graphic design, poetry, and video art. By tracing the spiritual and aesthetic echoes between Byzantine iconography and the Italian Renaissance, the work explores how cultural memory and artistic truth endure across centuries. Each photograph and poem becomes a fragment of a larger meditation on continuity, transformation, and the shared artistic soul of Europe.
The project is part of the subtheme Disrupted Realities – Poetry and the Politics of Truth.
Author
Igor Trajkovski Foja
Born on May 4, 1986 in Bitola, Igor Trajkovski known as Foja is an author, photographer, musician, graphic designer, screenwriter and film director. He enters art with combinations of photography and graphic art. His graphics are part of several exhibitions in the country and Europe, including the "International Biennale of Graphic Art, Portugal - 2014"; Graphic art exhibition "Mirror face to face" Vicenza, Italy - 2016. Solo photo exhibition "FUTURE IN THE PAST" 2022 (Ministry of Culture, work of national interest).
He is the author of the books: "Doll" - 2010 (short stories), the novel "Snowy Desert" - 2013 (Ministry of Culture, a work of national interest), book "FUTURE IN THE PAST" (pictures and memories) 2019, "POSITIVE - In conditions of total world depression" - 2022 and the book "Handbook for the screenwriter: A Writer's Guide to Documentary and Feature Film Scripts' - 2023.
He is the main and responsible editor of the anthologies for literary art: "Collegiumski Zapisnik 001" (2014) until "Collegiumski Zapisnik 010" (2023). Editor of the magazine "Magenta", which from 2015 onwards deals with topics related to art, especially in Bitola and the region. He is the founder of the "Live Literary Performance" group, which includes poets and musicians from Bitola, which presents the author's poetry in an informal way. He is the organizer of the festival "300 JOBS, TRISTA" Festival of literature and audio-visual arts. The festival has been held here since 2013, and so far guests from Serbia, Bulgaria, Albania, Greece, Kosovo, R. Ireland, India, USA, Czech Republic, Poland, Italy, France and others. He is the winner of numerous awards in the field of literature, including: First prize for poetic work at the poetry event "PLANETOPIJA 2019"; Medal "Cultural Center Mesopotamia - Belgrade" 2020; Special Prize for Poetry "GALATEO-ANTONIO DE FERRARIS CITY" - International competition in Rome, Italy for the song "YOU AND I" 2020. Completed postgraduate studies at FDU - Skopje (Film and TV screenplay) in 2023. INTERNATIONAL AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE "CITY OF GALITEO - ANTONIO DE FERRARIS" FOREIGN AWARDS FOR EXCELLENCE (2023) "For intensive literary and artistic work aimed at research, study, teaching and cultural promotion both at the national and international level" in the form of a certificate and gold plaque.
Filmography:
IN THE VALLEY OF THE CONSULS (2011) - Short film - Screenplay and Director / ROOM 13 (2017) -Short film - Screenplay / Laktiv Turizam Ohrid (2017) - Promotional video in the form of a short documentary (European Project) - Screenplay and Director
PLATES FROM BITOLA 60s (2019) - Documentary (25 minutes). Screenplay and Direction. / TV Series PRESPAV, (2019) - Season 4. Episode 5 "THE CHIEF INSPECTOR" Script, Episode 18 "TRANS TOILET" Script, Episode Role.
