Mladen Miljanović Pokaži rukom gdje te boli Show where it hurts with your hand NARODNI MUZEJ CRNE GORE ATELJE DADO Tijelo koje nestaje Stvaralaštvo Mladena Miljanovića oduvijek ishodi sa raskršća umjetnosti i života. Lična vojnička predistorija uticala je na to da njegova umjetnička karijera započne originalnim performansom Služim umjetnosti, tokom kojeg se umjetnik svojevoljno izolovao na godinu dana u prostoru nekadašnje kasarne „Vrbas” u Banjoj Luci, Bosna i Hercegovina. Automobil Zastava 101, simbol pokretljivosti i prosperiteta u bivšoj Jugoslaviji, koga je Miljanović dekonstrusao na više načina i upotrijebio u nekoliko performansa u Beču i na putu od Banjaluke do Berlina. Film Da li namjeravate da me lažete? traga za istinom o brutalnosti života, umjetnosti i odgovornosti u poslijeratnoj Bosni, dok njegov najnoviji ciklus fotografija Laku noć bilježi borbu i često neprijatne trenutke jednog života koji polako ističe. „Snimiti fotografiju znači zanimati se za stvari kakve one zaista jesu, za pređašnje stanje, status kvo, koje u stvari ostaje neizmijenjeno, saučestvovati s onim, šta god to bilo, što neki objekat ili temu čini zanimljivim, vrijednim fotografisanja, uključujći patnju ili nesreću drugih, ako je to predmet interesovanja”.[1] Ciklus Laku noć sastoji se od niza fotografija koje prikazuju prste jedne osobe kako drže rukom ispisane bilješke. Miljanović je odlučio da objektivom zabilježi jednostavne iskaze iz svakodnevnog života kao što su „Biću u bašti”, „Poštar ti je donio penziju” ili „Šta ćeš jesti”. Kada se bolje pogleda, vidi se da su ovi rukom pisani iskazi ili pitanja upućeni nemoćnom tijelu koje nije u stanju da samo funkcioniše. Ovo ljudsko tijelo treba kupati, brijati i obavještavati o svim svakodnevnim aktivnostima, poput toga šta su rekli susjedi, šta osoba koja se brine o njemu radi u različitim trenucima tokom dana, ili ko je zvao telefonom. Kako tijelo više nije u stanju da se brine o sebi ili da nezavisno donosi bilo kakve odluke, ove radnje postaju konstatacija o zavisnosti i krajnjoj ranjivosti, do toga da izazivaju nelagodnost. Ovo tijelo ne funkcioniše mimo svojih ograničenja, a njegov je univerzum sveden na svakodnevne poruke koje su jedini način komuniciranja i povezivanja s ostatkom svijeta. Neka od svjedočanstava otkrivaju da se radi o tijelu koje trpi bol, poput onog „Pokaži rukom gdje te boli”. Prikazujući izuzetno bolne a opet svakidašnje trenutke bistvovanja, umjetnik stvara fotografsku priču o ne tako prijatnim trenucima jednog ljudskog života koji se bliži kraju. Miljanović se od samog početka svoje karijere bavi tijelom, bilo svojim ili tuđim, i to sadržajima s kojima se nije baš uvijek najlakše suočiti. Ovog puta se opredijelio da prikaže tijelo koje je na zalasku života, bez prikazivanja samog ljudskog obličja. Patnja se prikazuje semantičkim sredstvima, uz fokusiranje na odnos između riječi i onoga što one označavaju. Kako nam ne dopušta da vidimo to ljudsko biće, umjetnik nam dopušta slobodu da zamišljamo i promišljamo mogući izgled ovog tijela koje propada. Miljanović želi da putem jezika i fotografije pojmimo ovo stradanje. Možda ovaj ciklus za sve nas znači pripremu za vrijeme kada će se naša tijela naći u podređenom položaju, pri čemu mi još uvijek nećemo biti spremni da izgovorimo posljednje „laku noć”. Kratki dokumentarac Da li namjeravate da me lažete? iz 2011. godine podudario se s tridesetogodišnjicom umjetničke i pedagoške karijere Vesa Sovilja (rođenog 1954. u Zavolju, u Bosni i Hercegovini), Miljanovićevog profesora i mentora u umjetnosti i životu. Kako bi obilježio ovaj jubilej, Miljanović je odlučio da realizuje ideju na koju je njegov mentor Sovilj došao prije mnogo godina, ali koju nikada nije sproveo u djelo. Ova jednostavna zamisao, kakve su uglavnom zamisli dobrih umjetničkih ostvarenja, ticala se pravljenja ostvarenja tokom policijskog ispitivanja pomoću detektora laži o istinitosti umjetnosti. Ova dosta jednostavna ideja pretvorila se za Miljanovića u popriličan poduhvat, tako da se prihvatio zadatka da organizuje veliki događaj, režirajući i komponujući različite aspekte društvene sredine u stanju stagnacije, pri čemu Sovilj učestvuje u dokumentarcu čiji je protagonista, a da to i ne zna. Simulišući hapšenje profesora Vesa Sovilja Miljanović posreduje u odvijanju stvarnosti. Za potrebe ovog ambicioznog filma upotrijebio je šest HD kamera, helikopter, pet oficira elitnih jedinica Policije Republike Srpske, tri policijska automobila, inspektora iz Ministarstva unutrašnjih poslova i poligraf. Neki bi pomislili da je Miljanović pretjerao pri realizaciji svog projekta, ali je sam Sovilj zaključio da se radilo jednostavno o „operativnoj hrabrosti”. Miljanović je poznat po tome da sve njegovo stvaralaštvo krasi moto„u službi umjetnosti”, a ovaj film predstavlja još jedan korak u njegovom traganju da sazna gdje su granice umjetnosti i koliko neprijatna ona može biti. Takođe preispituje pojmove moći, odgovornosti i istine, te koliko su umjetnik ili društvo voljni da se služe istima. S jedne strane, Miljanović posredno komentariše nesposobnost lokalne sredine da išta učini za jednog zrelog umjetnika, koji je tokom osamdesetih godina prošlog vijeka bio jedna od najdarovitijih ličnosti na umjetničkoj sceni bivše Jugoslavije, dok s druge demonstrira dokle je spreman da ide kako bi ostvario svoje ideje. Hapšenjem umjetnika Vesa Sovilja i njegovim ispitivanjem pomoću detektora laži Miljanović metaforički ukazuje na traume poslijeratne Bosne, na to kako se društvo odnosi prema onome što se desilo tokom rata i na to gdje pojedinac traga za istinom. Boško Bošković Installation view Expiring Body The crossroads of art and life have always been the point of departure in the oeuvre of Mladen Miljanovic. Influenced by his military background, his artistic career started with the seminal performance I Serve Art, where the artist voluntarily isolated himself over the course of one year inside the former military base “Vrbas” in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The car Zastava 101, the symbol of mobility and prosperity in ex-Yugoslavia, which Miljanovic deconstructed in several ways and utilized in several performances in Vienna and en route from Banja Luka to Berlin serving ordinary people for the purpose of art. The film Do You Intend to Lie to Me? seeks to reveal the truth about the brutality of life, art and responsibility in post-war Bosnia, while his newest series of photographs Good Night capture the struggling and often unpleasant moments of a life that is slowly expiring. “To take a picture is to have an interest in things as they are, in the status quo remaining unchanged, to be in complicity with whatever makes a subject interesting, worth photographing – including, when that is the interest, another person’s pain or misfortune.” The Good Night series consists of a group of photographs that depict the fingers of a person holding an assortment of handwritten notes. Through his lens Miljanovic decides to capture simple sentences from everyday life such as “I’ll be in the garden”, ‒The postman brought your pension” or ‒What would you like to eat”. Upon closer inspection one realizes that these handwritten statements or questions are directed towards a powerless body that is not able to function on its own. This human body needs to be bathed, shaved and informed of all the quotidian activities such as what the neighbors said, what the caretaker of this body is doing at various moments of the day, or who called on the telephone. No longer able to support itself or make any independent decisions, these actions become a statement about dependency and utter vulnerability to the point of discomfort. This body does not function beyond its confinements, its universe summed up to daily notes as the only mode of communication and connection to the rest of the world. Some of the testimonies reveal that this is a suffering body, such as “Show where it hurts with your hand”. Depicting extremely vulnerable and mundane instances of life, the artist creates a photo narrative of not so pleasant moments of a human life that is in its closing stages. Since the beginning of his career, Miljanovic’s has been engaging with the body, either his own or others’, his subject matters often not the easiest to confront. This time around he opts to present the body that is in the cycle of twilight within its existence, yet never portraying the human form itself. The suffering is represented through semantics, focusing on the relation between the words and what they denote. Because the artist does not let us see the human being, he gives us the liberty to imagine and contemplate what this deteriorating body might look like. It is through language and photography that Miljanovic wants us to comprehend these hardships. Perhaps this series represents a preparation for all of us that there will come a time when our bodies will be in a marginal position and we will not quite yet be ready to say the final good night. The short documentary film Do You Intend to Lie To Me? (2011) coincided with the 30th anniversary of the career of artist and art professor Veso Sovilj (b. 1954 in Zavolje, Bosnia & Herzegovina), who happens to be Miljanovic’s professor and mentor in art and life. To commemorate this jubilee, Miljanovic decided to realize a concept that his mentor Sovilj conceived many years ago, yet never realized. The simple idea, as most good artworks are, was to make a piece during a polygraph interrogation on the truthfulness of art. Da li namjeravate da me lažete? 2011. | Do You Intend to Lie To Me? 2011 video still, HDV - DVD, 14 min. This rather simple gesture became a vast undertaking for Miljanovic and he took upon himself the mission to orchestrate a great happening, directing and interweaving different segments of a stagnating social milieu, while Sovilj, the main protagonist, participates in the movie about himself without even knowing it. Miljanovic became a moderator of reality simulating the arrest of professor Veso Sovilj. For the purposes of this ambitious film, he used six HD cameras, one helicopter, five most elite officers of the police enforcement of Republika Srpska, three police cars, an inspector from the Ministry of the Interior and a polygraph. Some may think he went too far with his actions to realize the project, but Sovilj himself concluded that it was merely “functional boldness”. Throughout his oeuvre Miljanovic has been well-known for his motto “in the service of art”, and this film was yet another step in his quest of finding out what the boundaries of art are and how unpleasant it can be. He also examines the notions of power, responsibility and truth and how far an artist or society is willing to utilize them. On the one hand, Miljanovic indirectly comments on the inability of the local milieu to do anything for a seasoned artist who used to be one of the most talented individuals on the ex-Yugoslavia art scene of the 1980’s, and on the other he demonstrates how far he is willing to go to realize an idea. Through the arrest of the artist Veso Sovilj and his interrogation in front of a polygraph, the artist metaphorically brings forward the traumas of post-war Bosnia and how society deals with what happened during the conflict and where one seeks the truth. Bosko Boskovic Da li namjeravate da me lažete? 2011. | Do You Intend to Lie To Me? 2011 video still, HDV - DVD, 14 min. Mladen Miljanović Rođen 1981. u Zenici, završio srednju školu u Doboju. Nakon srednje škole pohađao Školu za rezervne oficire, gdje je dobio čin vodnika. Kao vodnik obučavao je 30 vojnika. Nakon završetka vojnog roka upisuje Umjetničku akademiju (Odsjek slikarstvo, diplomirao i magistrirao) u Banja Luci. Živi i radi u Banja Luci. Born in Zenica in 1981, completed the secondary school in Doboj. After the secondary school he attended the Reserve Officer School where he earned the rank of sergeant. As a sergeant he trained 30 privates. After completion of the military term he enrolled at the Academy of Arts (Department of Painting, BA -MA) in Banja Luka. Lives and works in Banja Luka. Selektirane samostalne izložbe | Selected solo exhibitions ‒ „Good Night - State of Body”, MC gallery, New York (USA), 2013 ‒ „Good Night - State of Body”, A+A gallery, Venice (Italy), 2012 ‒ „Indigo Power” Marin gallery, Umag (Croatia), 2012 ‒ „Good Night - State of Body”, HDLU (New media gallery), Zagreb (Croatia), 2012 ‒ „Taxi to Berlin”, Antje Wachs gallery, Berlin (Germany), 2011 ‒ „Museum Service”, MUMOK, Museum Modern KunstStiftung Ludwig Wien, (Austria), 2010 ‒ „Sarajevo Service”, National Gallery of B&H - Sarajevo, (B&H), 2010 ‒ „KILL” work in public space, Le mur Saint Martin, Paris (France), 2010 ‒„Occupational therapy”, Center in galerija P74, Ljubljana (Slovenia), 2009 ‒ „Holiday of discomfort”, Antje Wachs gallery, Berlin (Germany), 2009 ‒ „Sit-no from I serve art”, Duplex gallery, Sarajevo (B&H), 2009 ‒ „Occupational therapy”, MOCA of RS, Banja Luka (B&H) ‒ „I serve art” National Gallery of B&H, Sarajevo (B&H), 2008 ‒ „Occupo”, NeueGalerie Graz, Graz (Austria), 2007 ‒ „Relations”, FABRIK culture – Hegenheim (France), 2007 ‒ „I serve art”, ex military base Vrbas, Banja Luka (B&H), 2007 Selektirane grupne izložbe | Selected group exhibitions 2013 ‒ „The See is My Land”, MAXXI Museum of Contemporary Art, Rome (Italy) ‒ „I Lie to Them”, National Center for Contemporary Art, Grenoble (France) ‒ „I Can Be Outrageously Patient”, House of Legacy, Belgrade (Serbia) 2012 ‒ „Either/Or”, MS Dockville, Hamburg (Germany) ‒ „14x14”, Donumenta, Kunstforum Gallery, Regensburg (Gerrmany) ‒ „Not So Distant Memory”, No-Festival of Video-art and Animation in Ufa (Russia) ‒ „Survey of the Danube region” ,OberfalzerKunstlerhaus, Schwandorf (Germany) ‒ „Individual Views”, DonauEinkaufzentrum, Regensburg (Gerrmany) ‒ „Subjective observations”, Kunstlerhaus, Wiena (Austria) ‒ „5 Positions”, Collegium atisticum, Sarajevo (B&H) 2011 ‒ „Not So Distant Memory”, Dalewer Contemporary Art Center, Wilmington (USA) ‒ „Beyond The Truth”, Mestnagalerija Ljubljana, Ljubljana (Slovenia) ‒ „It`s Time We Got to Know Each Other”, 53. October Salone, Belgrade (Serbia) ‒ „Iron Applause”, Slovak National Gallery, Bratislava (Slovakia) ‒ „Not So Distant Memory”, National Center for Contemporary Art, St. Petersburg (Russia) ‒ „Continuity”, Center for Contemporary art Celje, Celje (Slovenia) ‒ „Stay Hungry”, Schrebergärten am Gleisdreieck, Berlin (Germany) ‒ „No Network”, International Biennale of Contemporary Art, Konjic (B&H) ‒ „255.804 km2”, BrotKunsthalle, Vienna (Austria) ‒ „Krieg.Kunst.Krise”, Artpoint gallery – KulturKontakt Austria, Vienna (Austria) ‒ „Band of Outsiders”, Big screen project, New York (USA) ‒ „A correspondence, Mladen Miljanovic – Nina Glockner”, De Balie - Amsterdam (Nederland) 2010 ‒ „Bosnia and Herzegovina Searching for Lost Identity”, P74 Gallery - Ljubljana (Slovenia) ‒ „The End of the World as We Know It”, Kunsthalle - Mullhouse (France) ‒ „I am what I am”, 25th Memorial NadeždaPetrović, Gallery NadeždaPetrović - Cacak (Serbia) ‒ „255.804 km2”, Mestnagalerija, Ljubljana (Slovenia) – ‒ „Condensations of the Social”, Smack Mellon, New York (USA) ‒ „Krieg.Kunst.Krise”, Hofburg Museum, Innsbruck (Austria) ‒ „VIII Performance &Intermedia Festival”, National Museum Szczecin, (PL) ‒ „Art and global crisis”, York, England (UK) ‒ „Interspace”, National Gallery of B&H, Sarajevo (B&H) 2009 ‒ „Henkel Art.Award”, MUMOK, Museum Modern KunstStiftung Ludwig Wien, (Austria) ‒ „HeißoderKalt”, Haus der Kulturen der Welt, Berlin (Germany) ‒ „Imaginary pavilion of B&H”, Palazzo Forti, Verona (Italy) ‒ „Interspace”, Museum of city Skoplje, Skopje, (Macedonia) ‒ „Lille 3000. Europe XXL.”, Lille, (France) ‒ „Art and Terrorism”, City gallery Bihac, Bihac (B&H) ‒ „Video channel 09”, Cologne, (Germany) 2008 ‒ „Artist-Citizen”, 49 October Salon, Belgrade (Serbia) ‒„Busan biennial”, International exhibition of video art - Busan (South Korea) ‒„Hotel MariaKapel”, a portrait by Katie Jane, Horn (Nederland) ‒ Örebro International Video Art Festival (Sweden) ‒„Boys and their toys”, SC gallery, Zagreb (Croatia) ‒„Spa Port”, International exhibition of contemporary art - Banja Luka (B&H) ‒ „My land Staglinc”, on property of VlastaDelimar, Koprivnica (Croatia) ‒„Joint exhibition of young visual artist awards winners’’, gallery Magacin – Belgrade (Serbia) ‒„Interspace”, Cultural Center of Belgrade, Belgrade (Serbia) ‒Vojna in Mir-Spomini in spomeniki”, gallery Rika Debenjak-Kanal (Slovenia) 2007 ‒ „Strategies of conforment in the age of biopolitics”, Brakeground Gallery, Amsterdam (Nederland) ‒ „Retrospektrum”, National Gallery of B&H, Sarajevo (B&H) ‒ „Corcoran”, salon - Museum of Contemporary arts Belgrade (Serbia) ‒ „Interspace”, Museum of Contemporary arts Vojvodina, Novi Sad (Serbia) ‒ „Dialogue”, exhibition, Hegenhaim-Basel (France) 2006 ‒ „Eastern neighbors”, Cultural Center Babel, Utrecht (Nederland) ‒ „Continental Breakfast”, Museum of Contemporary Art of RS, Banja Luka (B&H) ‒ Finalists of „ZVONO” annual Award, KC Banskidvor, Banja Luka (B&H) ‒ „(l)imitations”, young artists from B&H, Student Center Gallery, Zagreb (Croatia) ‒ „Real Presence”, International exhibition of students, Beograd (Serbia) 2005 ‒ „Hello Bing, how’s the brother”, National Gallery of B&H, Sarajevo (B&H) Nagrade | Awards ‒ 2009 „Henkel Art.Award” 09 ‒ 2007 „Zvono”, award for best young artist in B&H ‒ 2006 Award of the Museum of Contemporary Art RS in Banja Luka for the best works at the annual final exhibition of the Academy of Arts in Banja Luka Rezidencije | Residencies ‒ 2012 Donumenta - OberfalzerKunstlerhaus, Schwandorf (Germany) ‒ 2008 ISCP centar - New York (USA) ‒ 2007 NeueGalerie Graz, Graz (Austria) ‒ 2007 KulturFabrik, Hegenheim (France) Selektirane prezentacije i umjetnički razgovori | Selected presentations and artist talks ‒ 2012 Academy of Arts Munchen, Munchen - (Germany) ‒ 2012 HDLU (Mestrovic pavilion) in BLOK organisation, Zagreb (Croatia) ‒ 2012 „Perfect Strangers” Triple Cannopy (NY), Collegium Artisticum,, SA (B&H) ‒ 2012 Donumenta, Regensburg - (Germany) ‒ 2011 City Museum Ljubljana, Ljubljana - (Slovenia) ‒ 2011 53. October Salon, Belgrade - (Serbia) ‒ 2011 Nador Gallery, Pech - (Hungary) ‒ 2008 ISCP, New York - (USA) ‒ 2008 LMCC, New York - (USA) ‒ 2008 „Fnac” Stasbourg - (France) ‒ 2006 „Real presence” - Belgrade - (Serbia) Kontakt | Contact: [email protected] www.mladenmiljanovic.com www.mladenmiljanovic.info (beta-site) Izdavač: Narodni muzej Crne Gore | Za izdavača: Pavle Pejović | Kustos izložbe: Mirjana Dabović Pejović Tekst: Boško Bošković | Prevod: Branka Tubić | Fotografija: Mladen Miljanović | Dizajn: Branka Vujović Štampa: DPC | Tiraž: 300 Cetinje, jun | jul 2013.