We are pleased to invite you to the exhibition of the finalists and the award ceremony of the Radoslav Putar Award, the most important recognition for young artists in Croatia, which is being held for the 25th year in a row and is being realized for the seventh time in Split, at Salon Galić, in partnership with the Institute for Contemporary Art in Zagreb and the Croatian Association of Fine Artists – Split.
The opening program of this year’s exhibition of the finalists of the Radoslav Putar Award begins on Friday, June 12 at 8:00 PM in Salon Galić. The announcement of the winners and the ceremony of the Radoslav Putar Award are scheduled for 8:30 PM.
The exhibition will be open to visitors until July 9, 2026.
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ABOUT THE AWARD
The Radoslav Putar Award was established in 2002 by the Institute for Contemporary Art in Zagreb, with its international partners. The Radoslav Putar Award is awarded as part of the international network of YVAA – Young Visual Artists Awards, which consists of organizers of similar awards in 12 European countries.
This year, the Radoslav Putar Award is awarded for the 25th time to a Croatian artist under the age of 40, in collaboration with the Institute for Contemporary Art in Zagreb, the Croatian Association of Visual Artists – Split, and Gallery S from Koprivnica.
The award consists of a two-month stay at Residency Unlimited in New York, a solo exhibition at the Institute for Contemporary Art in Zagreb, the production of a multi-original in collaboration with Gallery S from Koprivnica, and a place on the jury of the Radoslav Putar Award next year.
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ABOUT THIS YEAR’S FINALISTS
Finalists of the Radoslav Putar Award 2026:
DINA GLIGO, Zagreb (1986)
IVAN GUNDIĆ, Koprivnica (1993)
NIKOLINA KUZMIĆ, Split (1994)
KRISTIJAN POPOVIĆ, Brdovec (1998)
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DINA GLIGO (1986)
Graduated in Small Sculpture and Medallion Making (MFA) at the Academy of Fine Arts Zagreb in 2012. Actively (co)operates in the field of contemporary transmedia art practices; initiates and exhibits in the field of visual, digital, and internet art.
Since 2014, co-founder and artistic director of the art organization Format C, an organization focused on artistic research, experimental media art, and collaborative creation. She continuously organizes Inquiry Inc. digital art production program (since 2016), /’fu:bar/ glitch art festival (launched in 2015), online art project Pivillion (since 2016) and many others.
Her artistic practice focuses on working with digital systems and infrastructures as spaces for creation, communication and collaboration. Since 2015, through the long-term project Pivillion, she has been developing processes that examine how the latest technologies can support the action and gathering of temporary communities around open, distributed and variable media. (In collaboration with Vedran Gliga.) Her focus is not on objects, but on protocols and the ways in which information, creativity and authorship move through the system of artistic production.
IVAN GUNDIĆ (1993)
He completed his undergraduate studies at the Faculty of Political Science and his graduate studies in photography at the Academy of Dramatic Arts in Zagreb. He is the recipient of two Rector’s Awards and the Dean’s Award for his graduate thesis. He has received several awards, including an award at the International Student Biennial, the Museum of Fine Arts Award at the 36th HDLU Youth Salon, the Grand Prix of the Sarajevo Photography Festival, and the Ex Aequo Award at the 29th Slavonian Biennial.
His artistic practice is based on the medium of photography, but he rarely uses it in its classical form. In addition to photography, he also uses other media such as sound, video, and performance. The focus of his interests are the themes of memory, language, society, and identity, with a special emphasis on exploring the relationship between people and images, both in a personal and intimate way, and in a broader social context. In addition to his artistic work, he is also actively involved in education. Since 2021, he has been working as an artist-mentor and lecturer at the Drugi kadar school of contemporary photography.
NIKOLINA KUZMIĆ (1984)
She studied at the Split Academy of Arts, undergraduate studies, graduating in 2016 in the class of Prof. Dean Jokanović Toumin. She graduated from the Split Academy of Arts, graduate studies; graduated in 2019 in the class of prof. Nina Ivančić. She attended the Art, Science and Health Master of Arts Online Pilot Course, 2022. She was a finalist for the Radoslav Putar Award in 2024.
Her work is based on playing with classic museum presentations, and one of the aspects that intrigues her is the space that refers to various heterotopias, whether it is archives, museums, cemeteries, as well as hospitals and personal collections. Another element that marks her artistic creativity is the living physical body, that is, the organism in its matter – flesh, genes, bones and skin.
KRISTIJAN POPOVIĆ (1998)
He graduated from ALU in 2025 in the class of Assoc. art. Dear Pavić. He stayed in 2023/2024. at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp. Since 2018, he has been actively working in the field of theatre and film set design. He has exhibited at numerous group exhibitions and three solo exhibitions. He is the recipient of the Rector’s Award (2021/2022), the 3rd Ivan Kožarić Young Artist Award at the MSU in Zagreb (2022), the 1st prize at the Starter Prize competition at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp (2023) and the Summa cum laude award from the ALU in Zagreb in 2024.
He tends to explore social issues and situations that arise within the specific context of the place he lives in. He works conceptually, often using performance, sculpture, art books and installations. He often uses humor and irony to make his works more accessible to the audience, without diminishing the complexity of the problem.
His education in theatre and film set design helps him shape the way he approaches space, combining conceptual thinking with spatial and performative strategies, constructing participatory situations.
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The jury of the Radoslav Putar Award 2026 was composed of:
Vladimir Novak
artist, Zagreb, winner of the Radoslav Putar Award 2025
Petra Dolanjski Harni
curator, head of the Prozori Gallery, Zagreb, call for curators under 40 years of age, Zagreb
Sabina Oroshi
curator, Museo Lapidarium, Novigrad /Cittanova, call for curators under 40 years of age
Darko Šimičić
head of the Tomslav Gotovac Institute, Zagreb
Maria Vassileva
curator, Head of the BAZA Award, Sofia, Bulgaria
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CO-FOUNDERS AND MEMBERS
Czech Republic, Jindrich Chalupecky Award
Slovakia, Oskar Čepan Award
Croatia, Radoslav Putar Award
Kosovo, The Artist of Tomorrow Award
Serbia, Dimitrije Bašičević – Mangelos Award
Macedonia, Danes Award
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Award Zvono
Slovenia, OHO Group Award
Bulgaria, Baza Award
Albania, Ardhje Award
Hungary, Leopold Bloom Award
Montenegro, Milčik Award
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PARTNERS
Trust for Mutual Understanding, New York; Residency Unlimited, New York; HULU – Split, Galerija S, Koprivnica; Vizkultura, Zagreb
PATRONS
Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia, City of Split, Kultura Nova Foundation, Split Tourist Board, Split-Dalmatia County, Europlakat
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Radoslav Putar (Varaždin 20.7.1921. – Zagreb 18.7.1994.), a renowned art historian and art critic, significantly steered the Croatian cultural scene towards a contemporary visual language with his work. His work is also important from a social aspect because he promoted the ideas of democracy and advocated dialogue, tolerance, freedom of expression and openness towards other cultures. Today it is difficult to imagine to what extent his work was heroic, and we can confidently say that his contribution to theory and practice is a key segment of contemporary Croatian art and culture. The initiative of the Institute for Contemporary Art Zagreb to name the award the Radoslav Putar Award reflects the desire to promote clear positions, active participation and high professional standards, as tools for affirming democratic processes, interdependent with the development of culture, cultural institutions and art in Croatia.
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SALON GALIĆ, Marmontova 3, Split
Opening hours: Monday – Friday 10:00-13:00 and 17:00-21:00,
Saturday 10:00-13:00
Closed on Sundays and holidays
