04.11.

Program 4.11.2019 (only in English available)

Dordićeva 8a/II, Zagreb

6:00 PM

Matija Peček: Duality of the Human Element | exhibition

There is an innate duality in every human being: good and evil, positive and negative, black and white. We are discovering the rainbow that is present not only within members of the LGBT* community, but within humanity as a whole.

The exhibition Duality of the Human Element is divided into two sections.

The first section is concerned with our connection to nature through the motifs of ropes and flowers in combining the Japanese Shibari culture (tying knots) and Ikebana – the art of the living bouquet. One is unified with the natural element through a conductor – the rope, while the scents of willow trees, roses and petunias linger over the body throughout the day.

The other section explores our connection to the elements. The medium of the rope accounts for more than a visual connectedness; it binds the mind and our perception. In this part of the exhibition, the author presents natural elements transferred through the rope and binds a fifth element – the human spirit – which completes the circle of life.

Matija Peček was born in Zagreb in 1989. He graduated from the Public relations department at the Zagreb school of business, which is reflected both in his work as a photographer, as well as in his art installations that serve as a social commentary, its seclusion, its orientation towards the material and the lack of a spiritual perspective of the world. He is also a Shibari performer, makes prints and frames and works as a concept photographer.

 

6:00PM

Rina Barbarić: Room for Losing Your Virginity | installation and exhibition

In spite of there being a lot of readily available information on the internet, educational programmes and oral tradition, losing one’s virginity is still a topic enveloped in myths and one that is rarely spoken about openly.

Often times, losing their virginity is presented to girls as a romantic and dreamy moment, a peak of trust and intimacy between two people, which if usually far from truth.

For most girls, their first sex is an uncomfortable and painful experience, due to tearing of the hymen and bleeding, but also due to the fear and shame often assigned to first or early sexual experiences. This is why many girls have the “get over with it” attitude concerning their first time and want to “get rid of” the burden of virginity as a kind of initiation ritual that grants them access to adulthood and that is to be suppressed in the future.

Therefore, in the Room, there are intertwined contrasting emotions such as excitement, need, desire, gentleness, discomfort, fear and pain. The Room for Losing Your Virginity exists at the intersection of childhood and adulthood. It is a piece dedicated to this undefinable, difficult-to-foresee feeling that has a strong influence on the definition of our sexuality.

The piece can be divided into two sections. The first consists of a series of 18 A4 drawings on paper entitled “Porto Tiles/Tales” made during an art residence in Porto in May 2019. The drawings draw inspiration from traditional Portuguese tiles as well as the fact that the venue of the residence originally functioned as a brothel.

The second section is an installation produced from the aforementioned drawings. It presents a room for losing your virginity, featuring wallpaper and a bed as focal points. A part of the installation is also the song “Sanjam” (“I’m dreaming”) by the artist DieZoone made for the exhibition “Mom was right” (2017).

Rina Barbarić (1991., Slovenia) is a visual artist currently freelancing in between Zagreb, Rijeka and Ljubljana. 

8:00 PM

Opening lecture: history and concept origins of queer theory

On the opening lecture of the Mapping the Unseen program, Amir Hodžić and Slaven Crnić will talk about history and concept origins of queer theory. In their talk with audience they will open the themes of queer as an identity in activist and cultural practices…

Amir Hodžić holds a BA in Sociology from the University of Zagreb, Croatia, and a MA in Gender and Culture Studies from the Central European University, Budapest, Hungary. For the past twenty years Amir has been involved in research, education and activism related to sex/gender equality, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and LGBTIQ issues. Amir works with and for various local, regional and international stakeholders.

Slaven Crnić is a doctoral student of gender studies at Central European University (CEU) with research focus on feminist and queer theory, and South Slavic literature and culture.