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Damir Očko
Pavilion of Croatia
Press Kit
Pavilion of Croatia at the
56th International Art
Exhibition – la Biennale
di Venezia /
Hrvatski paviljon na 56.
Međunarodnoj izložbi
vizualnih umjetnosti - la
Biennale di Venezia
Architect / Arhitekt:
Lovro Skoblar
Damir Očko
“Studies on Shivering: The
Third Degree” /
„Studije drhtanja: Treći
stupanj”
Production consultant /
Savjetnica produkcije:
Simone Birač
Curator / Kustos:
Marc Bembekoff
Commissioner / Povjerenik:
Ministry of Culture of
the Republic of Croatia
Ministarstvo kulture
Republike Hrvatske
Berislav Šipuš
Tamara Perišić
Coordinator /
Koordinatorica:
Nevena Tudor Perković
Production manager
and coordinator /
Voditeljica i koordinatorica
produkcije:
Tihana Puc
Artist’s Assistant /
Asistent umjetnika:
Vanja Babić
Film production /
Filmska produkcija:
Kreativni Sindikat,
Igor Grubić
Graphic design /
Grafičko oblikovanje:
Müesli
AV Technician /
AV tehničar:
AVinstal, Dejan Čuljat,
Igor Siuc
The project is financed by
the Ministry of Culture of
the Republic of Croatia
Projekt je financijski
omogućilo Ministarstvo
kulture Republike Hrvatske
Additional support from /
Financijska podrška:
- “Hrvatska kuća - Croatia
House“ Foundation
- Tiziana Di Caro Gallery,
Naples
Special Thanks / Posebne
zahvale: Neven Vranković,
Atlantic Grupa
Acknowledgments /
Zahvale:
Jasmina Bavoljak, Branka
Benčić, Ana Dana Beroš,
Nada Beroš, Matija
Bošnjaković, Diego
Carpentiero, Maja Cepetić,
Ivan Cizelj, Tiziana Di Caro,
Alessia Evangelista, Feđa
Hudina, Jasna Jakšić, Anja
Mamić, Ana-Maria Milčić,
Maša Milovac, Tihomir
Milovac, Patrizia Nicolai,
Jan Pavlović, Barbara
Španjol Pandelo, Danilo
Zambon, Maja Zeman
PRACTICAL
INFORMATION / INFO
Pavilion of Croatia
Hrvatski paviljon
Palazzo Pisani S. Marina,
Cannaregio 6103/A
30 121 Venezia
May 9 –
November 22 2015
9. svibnja – 22. studenoga
2015.
Open daily (except
Mondays):
10 am – 6 pm /
Svakim danom (osim
ponedjeljkom):
10:00 – 18:00
Opening / Otvorenje:
May 7 at 6 pm /
7. svibnja u 18:00 sati
Reception, co-organized
by the Pavilion of Croatia,
d.c.a. / the French association for the development
of centres d’art, Cura.
magazine, Tiziana Di Caro
Gallery and Fondation
d’entreprise Ricard:
May 7 at 7:30 pm
upon invitation only
Prijem u organizaciji
Hrvatskog paviljona, d.c.a.
/ Francuske udruge za
razvoj umjetničkih centara,
Cura. magazinea, Galerije
Tiziana Di Caro i Fondation
d’entreprise Ricard:
7. svibnja u 19:30 sati
ulaz s pozivnicom
Press contact /
Press-kontakt:
Simone Birač
@
croatian.pavilion.venice@
gmail.com
T
+33 (0)6 12 10 49 41
PAVILION
OF CROATIA
PALAZZO
PISANI S. MARINA
Cannaregio, 6103/A
Calle de le Erbe
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io
Rio
d
i Sa
Rio di
Calle Carmi
i ss a
Sant'A
nton
io
Calle della B
Calle
Ponte
di Rialto
nati
Calle
de Bo
Campo
rgolo
co
Santa Marina
Calle
hieri
Specc
Piazza
San Marco
Santa
Marin
a
Campo
S. Maria Formosa
SUMMARY / SAŽETAK
THE PROJECT / PROJEKT
P. 4
REVERSED INTERVIEW (EXTRACT)
OBRNUTI INTERVJU (ULOMAK)
P. 7
“THE
THIRD DEGREE”
“TK”
P. 13
P. 16
PICTURES / FOTOGRAFIJE
P. 17
BIOGRAPHIES / ŽIVOTOPISI
P. 23
The project
/
Projekt
Damir Očko has been selected by
the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of
Croatia to participate at the 56th International
Art Exhibition – la Biennale di Venezia with
a project entitled “Studies on Shivering : The
Third Degree“, curated by Marc Bembekoff.
Za nastup na Venecijanskome bijenalu, 56. Međunarodnoj izložbi vizualnih
umjetnosti, Ministarstvo kulture Republike
Hrvatske odabralo je Damira Očka i njegov
projekt „Studije drhtanja: Treći stupanj“,
koji kustoski potpisuje Marc Bembekoff.
The space where Damir Očko’s artistic
practice enfolds is at the junction between
poetical and political. The questions of the
human body and the exploration of the physical
realities of the body, as a social or political
subject, have been the core of his most recent
work. Damir Očko explores the themes of the
control and the lack of control, boundaries and
endurability of human presence within the political sphere, and the very notion of shivering as
an unconscious rebellion against the mechanisms
of control. He translates it into a very personal
visual constellation of works constantly oscillating between representation and abstraction.
Prostor u kojemu se odvija umjetnička
praksa Damira Očka smješten je na stjecištu
poetskoga i političkoga. Ljudsko tijelo i istraživanje fizičkih realnosti tijela kao društvenog ili
političkoga subjekta središnja su pitanja njegovih
najnovijih radova. Damir Očko istražuje teme
kontrole i nedostatka kontrole, granica i izdržljivosti ljudske prisutnosti u političkoj sferi, te
samu ideju drhtanja kao nesvjesne pobune protiv
mehanizama kontrole. Sve to transponira u vrlo
osobnu vizualnu konstelaciju radova koji neprestano osciliraju između reprezentacije i apstrakcije.
The project conceived for the Pavilion
of Croatia expands the poetics of Damir Očko’s
last two films, TK (2014) and The Third Degree
(2015). Both films question the social constraints
imposed to the body as a physical and social
entity. Evoking moments of passage and transition zones, such approach reveals the underlying violence of today’s globalized world.
In TK, an 8-part poem visually unfolds
through a montage of intertwining shots of
shivering bodies and scenes of an old man
suffering from Parkinson’s disease. This man
tirelessly attempts to write a sentence which
begins; “In Tranquility…” In The Third Degree,
almost abstract close-up shots of burnt skin
are filmed and edited with images reflecting
the crew while filming. The set, made from an
installation of broken mirrors, shows what is
usually hidden from sight and thus integrates
the viewer into the artistic development.
If these two films are the foundations
of the project, the display held in Palazzo
Pisani S. Marina develops their issues and
therefore echoes a form of violence brought
5
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
Projekt osmišljen za Hrvatski paviljon
proširuje poetiku dvaju najrecentnijih filmova
Damira Očka − TK (2014.) i Treći stupanj (2015.).
Oba filma propituju društvena ograničenja koja
se nameću tijelu kao fizičkomu i društvenom
biću. Evociranjem trenutaka prolaženja i tranzicijskih zona takav pristup razotkriva nasilje u
temeljima današnjega globaliziranog svijeta.
U filmu TK, montažom isprepletenih kadrova drhtavih tijela i prizora starca
koji boluje od Parkinsonove bolesti, pratimo
vizualno razvijanje poeme u osam dijelova.
Starac neumorno pokušava ispisati rečenicu
koja počinje: „U spokoju…“ U Trećem stupnju
gotovo apstraktni krupni planovi opečene kože
ispresijecani su kadrovima same filmske ekipe
u procesu snimanja filma. Scenografija, zapravo
instalacija od razbijenih zrcala, otkriva ono što
je obično skriveno od pogleda i na taj način
integrira gledatelja u umjetnički postupak.
Ukoliko ova dva filma uzmemo kao
polazište projekta, postav u prostoru Palače
Pisani S. Marina nastavlja razrađivati njihovu
problematiku i tako reflektira jedan oblik nasilja
koji proizlazi iz nestabilnosti između prividnoga
stanja spokoja i neprestanoga pritajenog pritiska.
by the instability between the apparent state
of tranquility and a lurking constant pressure.
Combining both intellectual and emotional
experiences for the audience, a tipping point
is created, which invites the viewers to make
them conscious of their role within the artistic
process. In showing internal structures of the
making of art in order to analyze this relation
between the subject, the audience and the artist,
Damir Očko is interested in creating a rhetoric, a
mechanism that reinforces our position as both
witnesses and actors of today’s complex world.
6
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
Kombinacijom intelektualnih i emocionalnih
iskustava za publiku stvara se točka preokreta,
koja gledatelje potiče da osvijeste vlastitu
ulogu u umjetničkome procesu. U razotkrivanju
unutarnjih struktura umjetničkoga stvaranja kako
bi analizirao taj odnos između subjekta, publike
i umjetnika Damir Očko nastoji stvoriti retoriku,
mehanizam koji podcrtava naš položaj svjedoka
i aktera u kompleksnome svijetu današnjice.
Reversed
interview
(extract)
/
Obrnuti intervju
(ulomak)
Damir Očko:
There is a kind of ˝taking off the skin˝
process in the works I am developing right now.
Trying to question the internal structures of how
and why particular works are made. In The Third
Degree, I express the role of the camera differently, and the way I am doing it is by making it
perform itself, integrated in the subject of the
film. So while I carry on with the subject, at the
same time, I make us, the crew and the camera
a symbiotic part of it. You see, there is an idea of
togetherness that I am interested in. Togetherness
that evolves from the violent ˝together˝ in the last
sections of TK, towards The Third Degree in which
another idea of ˝togetherness˝ is created through
kaleidoscopic images and reflections. This idea
embeds the questions of guilt and collective
responsibility by taking off the skin of the film as
well. A new film could simply open and a question might pop up: Shall we now burn together?
Marc Bembekoff:
We are all going to burn together – in
one way or another. It is not a pessimistic vision,
but a rather practical and responsible positioning. The world in which we live gets carried
away, and this process has continued to intensify. We are both actors and spectators of the
mutations of the contemporary world. Such an
observation is not new and has been haunting
the Art History iconography for centuries, for
example in the apocalyptic representations of
Hieronymus Bosch or Pieter Bruegel the Elder.
This lucid vision of the world and our positioning
as a spectator facing a representation appears
also in the theatre of Bertolt Brecht. It seems
to me that The Third Degree, with the inclusion of the team filming and the production
process is part of this dynamic: the distinction
between the acts of seeing and doing gives rise
to a critical and artistic construction, which
undermines the relationship of subordination
of the viewer and makes him an actor, actively
involved in the project. That is what Jacques
Rancière analyses in The Emancipated Spectator.
DO: Of course, it is not about pessimism
at all. In fact the collective pyre I am imagining
8
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
Damir Očko:
U radovima kojima se trenutno bavim
na djelu je svojevrstan proces „skidanja kože“.
Pokušavam propitivati unutarnje strukture toga
kako i zašto određeni radovi nastaju. U Trećem
stupnju kameri dajem drugačiju ulogu, i to tako
što i nju pretvaram u izvođača, integriranoga
u predmet filma. Pa tako dok ga razvijam,
istovremeno činim nas, filmsku ekipu i kameru,
njegovim simbiotskim dijelom. Znaš, zanima
me ideja zajedništva. Zajedništva koje evoluira
iz onoga nasilnog „zajedno“ u posljednjim
sekvencama filma TK prema Trećem stupnju,
u kojemu se druga ideja „zajedništva“ gradi
kroz kaleidoskopske slike i zrcaljenja. Ta ideja
ujedinjuje pitanja krivnje i kolektivne odgovornosti tako što kožu skida i samom filmu. Tu bi
se jednostavno mogao otvoriti novi film, s ovim
pitanjem: Hoćemo li sad gorjeti zajedno?
Marc Bembekoff:
Svi ćemo mi gorjeti zajedno – na ovaj
ili onaj način. Nije to pesimistična vizija, već
praktično i odgovorno pozicioniranje. Svijet u
kojemu živimo stalno se urušava i taj se proces
sve više intenzivira. Obojica smo akteri i promatrači mutacija suvremenoga svijeta. Nema u
tom zapažanju ništa novo, ono se provlači kroz
ikonografiju povijesti umjetnosti već stoljećima,
primjerice u apokaliptičnim reprezentacijama
Hieronymusa Boscha ili Pietera Bruegela Starijeg.
Ta lucidna vizija svijeta i naše pozicioniranje
kao promatrača suočenoga s reprezentacijom
pojavljuje se i u kazalištu Bertolta Brechta.
Čini mi se da je Treći stupanj, koji prikazuje
filmsku ekipu i sam proces nastajanja filma,
dio te dinamike: distinkcija između postupaka gledanja i činjenja dovodi do kritičke i
umjetničke konstrukcije, koja pak podriva odnos
podložnosti gledatelja i pretvara ga u sudionika,
aktivno uključenoga u projekt. Time se Jacques
Rancière bavi u Emancipiranom gledatelju.
DO: Naravno, uopće se ne radi o
pesimizmu. Ustvari, ta kolektivna lomača koju
zamišljam nešto je nužno – trenutak koji bismo
kao društvo mogli potaknuti i održavati. Vrlo
je zanimljivo to što kažeš o Trećem stupnju i
is something necessary – a moment we could
induce and sustain as a society. It is very interesting what you are saying in relation to The Third
Degree and the merging moment of the two sides
of the film: the seen and the unseen. However,
I feel that we could scratch the surface even
further. Besides the obvious exposure of the act
of filming/seeing in relation to the act of what
is filmed as a kind of a representation for the
audience in the contemporary world, what I aim
for is more of a meltdown. The process of filming
becomes the film itself. We, the crew merge with
the subject and become a single body. This body
further reflects ethical concerns if you think
about the particular subject of The Third Degree,
but on a wider scale it is also concerned with the
role of art as a political protagonist. The reason
behind this is a troubling filming of TK, where I
have experienced more moral dilemmas on how
the film was made. The filming took place in harsh
conditions and our subjects were standing naked,
surrounded by the crew who were well dressed
for the winter. It was like making a film about
violence in a very violent way. It got me thinking
about whether reflecting on this could somehow
resonate on the wider social mechanisms that
work in the same way. The actions and movements we take to come to a certain point. Does it
all matter, or do we only hide behind opinions?
MB: We are all the transmitters of an
opinion. Through his works, the artist presents
a point of view – so does the curator: from the
moment that we – I mean, each individual –
express ourselves, we inscribe ourselves into a
rhetoric; we launch the lines of approach and
other angles to see the world differently either
by magnifying or criticizing its excesses. In The
Third Degree, you can clearly feel those moments
where everything blends and melts, creating
hybrid zones where the body is fragmented. This
visual sedimentation – which is also a layering
of senses – becomes sometimes abstract,
which also mirrors the abstraction of a world we
have more and more difficulty understanding.
DO: I have become more interested
in reaching a kind of a tipping point with my
works, as I said earlier to embed more than just
an opinion. Even though it is very difficult to
sort of “live-stream” the rhetoric , I go for it as
9
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
trenutku spajanja dvaju naličja filma: viđenoga
i neviđenoga. No mislim da bismo tu površinu
mogli još malo jače zagrepsti. Osim što, očito,
razotkrivam postupak snimanja filma/gledanja
u odnosu na ono što se snima kao neku vrstu
reprezentacije za publiku u suvremenome svijetu,
ono čemu zapravo težim prije bi se moglo opisati
kao totalno stapanje. Proces snimanja filma
pretvara se u film. Mi, filmska ekipa, spajamo se
sa subjektom i postajemo jedno tijelo. To tijelo još
snažnije odražava etička pitanja ako se uzme u
obzir konkretna tema Trećega stupnja, ali u širem
kontekstu također se bavi ulogom umjetnosti
kao političkoga protagonista. Razlog tomu je
neugodno snimanje TK-a i moralne dileme koje
su me mučile zbog načina nastanka toga filma.
Snimanje se odvijalo u teškim uvjetima i naši su
izvođači stajali goli, okruženi ekipom odjevenom
u zimsku odjeću. Kao da smo radili film o nasilju
na veoma nasilan način. Tu sam se zapitao bi li
refleksija o tome mogla naći svoj odjek u širim
društvenim mehanizmima koji funkcioniraju na
isti način. Postupci i kretanja koja poduzimamo
dolaze do određene točke. Ima li sve to smisla
ili se naprosto skrivamo iza različitih stavova?
MB: Svi smo mi odašiljači stavova.
Umjetnik svojim djelima nudi određenu perspektivu – kao, uostalom, i kustos: od trenutka
kad mi – time mislim na svaku pojedinu osobu
– izrazimo svoj stav, upisujemo se u retoriku;
otvaramo nove pristupe i druge kutove kako
bismo svijet promotrili na drugačiji način, bilo
tako da njegove ekscese stavljamo pod povećalo,
bilo da ih podvrgavamo kritici. U Trećem stupnju
jasno se mogu osjetiti oni trenuci kad se sve
prožima i otapa, stvarajući hibridne zone u
kojima je tijelo fragmentirano. Ta vizualna sedimentacija – ujedno taloženje osjeta – katkad
postaje apstraktna, što ujedno zrcali apstrakciju ovoga sve manje razumljivog svijeta.
DO: Sve me više zanima da u svojim
radovima dosegnem svojevrsnu točku preokreta,
kao što sam ranije rekao, da inkorporiram nešto
više od stava. I premda je vrlo teško postići live
streaming retoriku, ipak to nastojim kako bih
publici pružio spoj intelektualnoga i emocionalnog iskustva. Prolazak kroz moje radove
trebao bi pobuditi određeni osjećaj pustolovine.
Treći stupanj razvija se kao kaleidoskop; on ne
a combination of an intellectual and emotional
experience for the audience. There should be
a sense of an adventure in the way one goes
through my works. The Third Degree grows as a
kaleidoscope; it questions not only the means of
making things, but also the means of engaging
an audience. Reflections are filmed, and everything within is bouncing back to the film itself
as a camera-subject loop. I do wonder however,
how one makes a tool that could also reflect the
audience and their real life experience of the
film: a camera-subject-audience loop if possible.
Where might we find the tipping point in which
the togetherness I spoke of earlier might also
include the audience? From a curatorial point of
view this must be an interesting challenge, right?
MB: Well, yes, obviously. The exhibition
format itself could be the tool that serves as a
shifting point. From a curatorial point of view,
including the viewer is always central. The visitors
are actually at the very heart of the exhibition
device, they become the receiver or the target.
If they see and/or feel things, at one point, if
they recognize their own image, it takes their
consciousness onto another level. An immersive installation, I think that the display of the
Pavilion of Croatia plays an important role in
such awareness: the spatial path leads to this,
especially the reflection of the body and space
(as well as the roofs of Venice) in broken mirrors
that give rhythm to the space, like different
stations. The mirrors are very important in this
project, first and foremost in The Third Degree
film. Even during the shooting… I was both
uncomfortable and fascinated by this device you
conceived: it was really intense to see the set
and to be included in it at the same time. The
kaleidoscope really works, it repositions us.
DO: The kaleidoscope is a device of
disembodiment. It gives an analytical image
with its fragmented, accidental reflections. I am
interested in the analytical. First and foremost,
I would like to dissect and open up the way
the works are made. This is not just apparent
in The Third Degree, but in the other works as
well. Poetry scattered throughout the rooms
of Palazzo Pisani S. Marina show discreet
instructions on how it should be read out loud.
Constellations of objects that are more of a
10
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
propituje samo načine stvaranja, nego i načine
angažiranja publike. Odrazi se snimaju i sve u
njima reflektira se natrag u film kao loop između
kamere i subjekta. Pitam se, doduše, kako
napraviti neki instrument koji bi zrcalio publiku i
njezin stvarni, živući doživljaj filma: loop između
kamere, subjekta i publike, ako je to moguće.
Gdje bismo mogli pronaći tu točku preokreta
u kojoj bi ono zajedništvo koje sam ranije
spominjao uključilo i publiku? S kustoske točke
gledišta, to mora biti zanimljiv izazov, zar ne?
MB: Da, jasno. Sam format izložbe može
biti instrument koji služi kao točka pomaka.
S kustoske točke gledišta, angažman gledatelja uvijek je ključan. Posjetitelji su zapravo u
samome središtu izložbenoga postupka, oni
postaju prijemnik ili meta. Ako u određenoj
točki vide i/ili osjećaju, ako prepoznaju svoj
vlastiti lik, to njihovu svijest podiže na drugu
razinu. Kao imerzivna instalacija, mislim da
izložba u Hrvatskome paviljonu igra važnu ulogu
u takvom osvješćivanju: prostorni plan vodi
prema tome, osobito odrazi tijela i prostora (a
i venecijanskih krovova) u razbijenim zrcalima
koja prostoru daju ritam, kao različite postaje.
Zrcala su u ovome projektu iznimno važna,
osobito u filmu Treći stupanj. Pa čak i tijekom
snimanja… taj postupak koji si osmislio u meni
je pobuđivao i nelagodu i fascinaciju: iskustvo
gledanja scenografije i istovremene uključenosti
u nju bilo je doista intenzivno. Kaleidoskop
zbilja funkcionira, stavlja nas u novu poziciju.
DO: Taj je kaleidoskop sredstvo obestjelovljenja. Svojim fragmentiranim, nasumičnim
odrazima pruža analitičku sliku. Zanima me
analitičko. Prije svega, volio bih secirati i raščlaniti način na koji djela nastaju. To nije očito
samo u Trećem stupnju, nego i u drugim radovima. Poezija rasuta kroz prostorije Palače
Pisani S. Marina sadrži diskretne upute da je
treba čitati naglas. Konstelacije objekata, koji
su više nositelji ideja nego umjetnička djela
sama po sebi, ondje su da odraze stanje mojih
radova u fazama između nastajanja i recepcije.
Tu je i način na koji je izložba koncipirana, više
kao analitička krivulja nego kao klasično izlaganje radova. Upravljanje prostorom koji ima
primarno analitičku svrhu je jedno, ali podjednako je važno upravljati vremenom izložbe. Baš
placeholder for ideas rather than art itself are
there to reflect the state of my works in stages
between the production and reception. There
is, of course, the way the exhibition is conceived
and that is more as an analytical curve than a
classical display of works. Managing the space
with more analytical approach is one thing,
but there is also a need to manage the time
of the exhibition. Like a film, an exhibition has
its duration. I don’t mean the actual duration
of the Biennale, but a time the exhibition itself
holds the viewer within. So before we set the
imaginary clock I wonder if we could consider
the path between the two films, The Third
Degree and TK, to be a third film as well?
MB: What you mention here is really
stimulating. I’m interested in Expanded Film
and how objects displayed inside a space
can produce a cinematic experience. To me,
Expanded Cinema is not only a film material or
a projection, but it can also be diverse objects,
giving a material quality back to Time and
Space. It’s like being on a train and watching
the landscape unfold before your eyes. This is
a moment of transition, of passage from one
place to another – but what happens in between
those two physical points is full of different scale
moments, thoughts and vision. Actually, I like this
shift reversing the role and the position of the
body: by breaking out of the traditional movie
theatre and by integrating the moving body of
the visitor into the exhibition space, new forms
that take account of the roles of the viewer
and the object created can be generated. From
stillness, sitting in front of a projection, the body
of the viewer starts moving. Initially physical, this
visual relationship also summons up our mental
resources and sets us thinking about what is on
display: tangible objects, yes, but also visions
of the world falling between subjectivity and
externality – between the closed world and the
infinite universe (to quote a fascinating book
by philosopher-historian Alexandre Koyré).
DO: It is rather a delicate procedure
to expand the film throughout the exhibition.
Aware of all the traps that could make it banal,
I have put a lot of thought into what kind of
a materialization must happen in the rooms
between the TK and The Third Degree films. The
11
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
kao film, i izložba ima svoje trajanje. Ne mislim
pritom na trajanje Bijenala, nego na vrijeme u
kojem sama izložba zaokuplja gledatelja. A prije
nego što navijemo taj imaginarni sat, pitam se
bismo li mogli o stazi između dva filma, Treći
stupanj i TK, razmišljati kao o trećem filmu?
MB: To je doista poticajna tema. Zanima
me prošireni film i kako objekti izloženi u nekom
prostoru mogu stvoriti kinematsko iskustvo. Za
mene prošireni film nije samo filmski materijal ili
projekcija, nego to mogu biti i različiti objekti koji
vraćaju materijalnu kvalitetu Vremenu i Prostoru.
Kao kad si u vlaku i promatraš kako se krajolik
razmotava pred tvojim očima. To je trenutak tranzicije, prolaska iz jednoga mjesta u drugo – ali
ono što se događa između tih dviju fizičkih točaka
obiluje trenucima, mislima i vizijama različitih
razmjera. Zapravo, sviđa mi se taj pomak koji
izokreće ulogu i poziciju tijela: probojem iz tradicionalne kinodvorane i integriranjem pokretnoga
tijela posjetitelja u izložbeni prostor mogu se
generirati nove forme koje propituju uloge gledatelja i kreiranog objekta. Umjesto nepomičnosti,
sjedenja pred projekcijskim platnom, tijelo gledatelja počinje se gibati. Premda je isprva fizički, taj
vizualni odnos ujedno mobilizira naše mentalne
resurse i potiče nas da razmišljamo o tome što
je izloženo: opipljivi predmeti, da, ali također
vizije svijeta na pola puta između subjektivnosti
i eksternalnosti – između zatvorenoga svijeta i
beskonačnoga svemira (da citiram fascinantnu
knjigu filozofa povjesničara Alexandrea Koyréa).
DO: Proširenje filma kroz izložbu dosta
je delikatan postupak. Bio sam svjestan svih
zamki koje bi nas mogle odvesti u banalnost
pa sam dosta razmišljao o tome kakva se vrsta
materijalizacije mora dogoditi u izložbenim
dvoranama između filma TK i filma Treći stupanj.
Najvažnije mi je bilo da ne koristim rekvizite ili
predmete doslovno prenesene iz samih filmova
te da nađem način da proširim poetiku filmova
u možda čak sasvim drugačijim radovima. Ali
tu se nametnulo pitanje o ponašanju predmeta iz filmova u kontekstu izložbe. Zato sam
odlučio uvrstiti predmete kao što su pjesme
i instalacija sa zrcalima, direktno preuzete iz
filmova. Predomislio sam se zato što, primjera
radi, snimljena instalacija sa zrcalima u Trećem
stupnju ima drugačiju ulogu od instalacije na
main concerns were not to make use of objects
such as props or straight-forward derivates from
the films itself and to find a way to expand the
poetics of the films throughout even maybe
completely different works. But then there was a
question of how the objects that come from the
films behave in the context of the exhibition. So
I have decided to include objects such as the
poems and the mirror installation, which directly
derive from the films. What turned my thought
around was that for example the filmed mirror
installation in The Third Degree has a different
role that the one exhibited. It is acting as a
different tool. In the film it bounces back to the
screen the internal organs of the film, peeling its
skin off, and in the exhibition it embraces the
audience. Conceptually speaking this completes
a full circle, signifying the keywords such as
“togetherness“ in the idea of what the exhibition
can be. I am justifying the fact I have turned the
traps into a conceptual necessity but we have
worked together on many occasions, and I know
that you understand the problem of “traps“
very well. We do what is necessary and we try to
avoid the excess for the sake of making a clear
experience. A photography of the set becoming
a collage, a mirror set becoming an installation,
poetry scripting the path through the exhibition.
How do you see this particular material changing
place from the film towards the exhibition?
MB: What you say about the changing role of the elements from the film set to
the exhibition space is inevitable. To me, their
function on the film set is totally different, even
if, obviously, there are some evident links with
their display on site. While being filmed, they are
part of a device that generates an illusion, but
in the Palazzo Pisani S. Marina, their physical
quality is more than tangible. It is also crucial
that they remind us of the meaning of “being
here”, right now, in a specific venue. The standing
broken mirrors, for instance, reflect the roofs
of Venice and bring us back to a certain kind
of reality – even if I have sometimes the feeling
that Venice is a city out of reality, like frozen in
time... From a curatorial point of view, this material has a direct relation to the visitor, without
the filter of the film: the devices are there to
be experienced one by one, and by everyone.
12
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
izložbi. Funkcionira kao druga vrsta alata. U filmu
se vraća prema ekranu, odražavajući unutarnje
organe filma, guleći mu kožu, dok u izložbi
obuhvaća publiku. Konceptualno gledano, time
se zatvara krug, simbolizirajući ključne riječi
poput „zajedništva“ u ideji onoga što izložba
može biti. Nižem opravdanja za to što sam
zamke pretvorio u konceptualnu nužnost, ali
ti i ja smo često surađivali pa znam da odlično
razumiješ problem „zamki“. Činimo što je nužno
i nastojimo izbjeći pretjerivanja kako bismo
postigli jasno iskustvo. Fotografija filmskoga
seta postaje kolaž, scenografija sastavljena od
zrcala pretvara se u instalaciju, poezija bilježi
put kroz izložbu. Kako ti gledaš na izmještanje ovoga materijala iz filma na izložbu?
MB: To što govoriš o izmijenjenoj ulozi
elemenata s filmskoga seta u izložbenome
prostoru jest neizbježno. Za mene je njihova
funkcija na filmskome setu sasvim drugačija,
premda, naravno, postoje neke očigledne
poveznice s njihovim postavom u izložbenome
prostoru. Kad ih snima kamera, dio su postupka
koji generira iluziju, ali u Palači Pisani S. Marina
njihov fizički aspekt više je nego opipljiv. Također
je krucijalno što nas podsjećaju na značenje
„prisutnosti“, baš sad, tu, na konkretnome
mjestu. Primjera radi, stojeća razbijena zrcala
odražavaju krovove Venecije i vraćaju nas u
određenu vrstu zbilje – iako ponekad imam
osjećaj da je Venecija grad izvan zbilje, zamrznut
u vremenu… Što se tiče kustoske točke gledišta,
ovaj materijal ima neposredan odnos s posjetiteljem, bez filtra filma: sve što je izloženo
može se doživjeti individualno ili zajednički.
“TK”
/
“The Third Degree”
TK
2014
4k transfered to full HD
video, sound, color, 19’46”
“for voice and strings”
Following up the artist’s film SPRING
(2012), TK (2014) brings the interest for the
language of body and its relation to the socio
political context of “physical presence” back
in the center of the artists practice. The title
of the work “TK”, is an onomatopoeic description of the sound made either by stone hitting
the ground or by teeth closing in bite.
Departing form an eight part poem
(part seven being excluded form a film itself,
however its narrative significance is further
explored in the exhibition surrounding the film),
the artist constructs a complex polyphonic
work in which poetry meets movements,
sounds, silences, bodies, and endurability in
order to project the ideas behind the work.
Several topics constantly reoccurring through out the work are brought
forward by a meticulously scored narration, in which pause and silence are equally
important as the spoken or written word.
Poem itself depicts on various images,
starting as a morning song in which a question of a routine and a rotation turns the
engine on for work to move towards more
difficult imagery. People gather in dangerous
constellations to act in violence, to observe
silently, or to setup the false feeling of tranquility, which is constantly turned upside down
by the various mechanisms of the film itself.
Heavy things get stuck in the throat, stones
used as tools and voices come to unrest.
Two types of scenes collide together.
First one follows the hands on an old man who
suffers from a Parkinson, initiating a core lines
of the poem in a written form. Each time after
the line has been set on paper by his shaky
hand, second set of images takes over. There,
14
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
TK
2014 .
4k transfer na HD video, zvuk, boja, 19’46”
„Za glas i žičane instrumente“
Nastavljajući se na raniji film SPRING
(2012), TK u središte pozornosti ponovno vraća
umjetnikovo zanimanje za jezik, tijelo i njegov
odnos sa društvenopolitičkim kontekstom „fizičke
prisutnosti“. Naslov TK onomatopejski je opis
zvuka kamena koji udara o tlo ili zuba u zagrizu.
Kroz osmodijelnu poemu (sedmi dio
ne pojavljuje se u filmu, ali njegov se narativni
značaj pomnije propituje u izložbi izgrađenoj
oko filma) umjetnik gradi kompleksno polifonijsko djelo u kojemu poezija susreće pokrete,
zvukove, tišinu, tijela i izdržljivost, s ciljem
dočaravanja ideja koje to djelo pokreću.
U djelu se neprestano iznova pojavljuje
nekoliko tema, koje podcrtava pomno komponirana naracija, gdje stanka i tišina igraju jednako
važnu ulogu kao izgovorena ili napisana riječ.
Poemom su oslikani različiti prizori,
počevši od jutarnje pjesme u kojoj pitanje
rutine i rotacije pokreće mehanizam djela
i usmjerava ga prema zahtjevnijim slikama.
Ljudi se okupljaju u nasilnim konstelacijama
ili kao promatrači u tišini ili kako bi uspostavili lažni osjećaj mira koji se stalno preokreće
naglavačke mehanizmima samog filma. Teški
predmeti zapinju u grlu, kamenje korišteno kao
alat i glasovi idu prema sve većem nemiru.
U samoj filmskoj strukturi sudaraju
se dvije vrste prizora. Prvi prate ruke starca
oboljelog od Parkinsonove bolesti kako ispisuje ključne stihove pjesme. Svaki put kad
drhtavom rukom povuče liniju, drugi set prizora
preuzima ekran te kamera prati skupinu
mladih ljudi kako razodjeveni stoje na oštroj
zimi. Njihovi mišići, koža i udovi drhte dok
pokušavaju ostati mirni, a kamera razotkriva
kako se lako stvari raspadaju, smirenost nestaje
i tijela ostaju gotovo bez kontrole. Upravo ta
the camera follows a group of young men enduring the harsh winter, bare and naked. Shivering
muscles, skin and limbs in their attempts to
remain tranquil while the camera slowly observes
how easily things fall apart; calmness decaying
and bodies are left with a very little control. It
is exactly this idea of slowly loosing the control
that adds to the political significance of the
whole work. Each scene further hosts a part of
a poem spoken in correlation to the shivering,
hence turning the bodies on the screen into a
vessel for poem, sounds, voices and meanings.
Yet, another mechanism runs through
the film as well. A musical component appearing
mostly through out the winter scenes that contain
a precise score composed for a group of strings.
This however is far form a typical string music.
Technique employed here has been influenced
by the ideas of the shivering and friction as well.
Playing the strings by adjusting the bow to the
various pressures, and particularly achieving
to maximize the pressure to the point where
moving the bow in frenetic and rapid way will
result the strings to get warm. Sounds that flicker
on the surface, but also between pure tone and
harmonics, between tone and noise, act as a
“warming” mechanism, an attempt to set up a fire
between the lines and shivering, an attempt to
ignite things up from the inside of the film itself.
TK is produced by Kreativni
Sindikat, supported by HAVC
- Croatian Audio Visual Centre
15
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
ideja o postupnom gubitku kontrole ono je što
čitavom djelu daje političko značenje. Svaka
sljedeća scena sadrži dio pjesme izgovorene
u korelaciji s drhtanjem, pretvarajući tijela na
ekranu u dio poetskog konteksta u kojemu se
preklapaju riječi, zvukovi, glasovi i značenja.
No kroz film se provlači još jedan mehanizam. Riječ je o glazbenoj komponenti, koja
se pojavljuje uglavnom u zimskim prizorima i
precizno je skladana za žičane instrumente. Ipak,
daleko je od tipične glazbe za žičane instrumente.
I ovdje se, naime, primjenjuje tehnika izvođenja
zvukova pod utjecajem ideja drhtanja i trenja. Pri
sviranju se varira pritisak gudala na žice, osobito
pojačavanjem pritiska do točke gdje frenetično i
ubrzano povlačenje gudala zagrijava žice. Zvukovi
koji trepere na površini, ali isto tako između
čistog tona i harmonije, između tona i šuma, funkcioniraju kao „grijaći“ mehanizam, kao pokušaj da
se raspiri vatra između linija i drhtanja, pokušaj
da se stvari zapale iznutra, iz samog filma.
TK je nastao u produkciji Kreativnog sindikata, uz potporu Hrvatskog audiovizualnog centra (HAVC).
The Third Degree
2015
4k transfered to full HD
video, sound, color, 11’
Treći stupanj
2015 .
4k transfer na HD video
zvuk, boja, 11’
The Third Degree was shot in a set of
standing broken mirrors, thus generating a
confusion between what the camera films and
what the viewer sees. As its title says, the film
questions what is the third degree through the
metaphor of human skin severely damaged by
burnings: almost abstract close-ups of recovering
skin melt with footage of the film set. In English,
the term “The Third Degree” has two meanings:
an extremely burnt skin, but also a process
of extorting the confession under violence.
Treći stupanj sniman je među stojećim
razbijenim zrcalima, koja stvaraju zabunu
između onoga što kamera snima i onoga što
gledatelj vidi. Kao što i sam naslov kaže, film
propituje što je to treći stupanj kroz metaforu
teško opečene ljudske kože: gotovo apstraktni
krupni planovi kože koja zacjeljuje stapaju
se sa snimkama filmskog seta. Na engleskom
jeziku, termin „treći stupanj” ima dva značenja:
označava teške opekline, ali i proces nasilnog
iznuđivanja priznanja od okrivljenika.
This film brings up the question of edges,
and beyond those limits, examines the meaning
of “resistance to the very end”. Both TK and The
Third Degree reflect the creative process and
its ethics, pushing the envelope on how art can
render such topics. Especially here, there is some
kind of a Brechtian movement, which reveals the
seen and the unseen, the role of the viewer as an
active witness, as well as the team while filming.
Ovaj film postavlja pitanje rubova, te
s druge strane tih granica ispituje značenje
„otpora do samog kraja”. I TK i Treći stupanj
reflektiraju kreativni proces i njegovu etiku,
pomičući granice načina na koji umjetnost
pristupa takvoj problematici. Upravo se ovaj film
ponajviše odlikuje svojevrsnom brehtijanskom
strategijom, koja otkriva viđeno i neviđeno,
ulogu gledatelja kao aktivnog svjedoka, kao i
samu filmsku ekipu u procesu snimanja filma.
The Third Degree is produced by Kreativni
Sindikat, supported by HAVC - Croatian
Audio Visual Centre and Ministry of
Culture of the Republic Croatia
16
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
Tre
ći stupanj nastao je u produkciji
Kreativnog sindikata uz potporu Hrvatskog audiovizualnog centra (HAVC) i Ministarstva kulture Republike Hrvatske.
Pictures
/
Fotografije
1
2
3
1
Damir Očko
Untitled, 2013
Collage, 73 x 50 cm
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
4
2
Damir Očko
Untitled, 2013
Collage, 68 x 47,6 cm
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
3
Damir Očko
Untitled, 2013
Collage, 73 x 50 cm
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
4
Damir Očko
Untitled, 2013
Collage, 104 x 70,6 cm
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
18
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
1
Damir Očko
Untitled, 2015
Collage, 120 x 80 cm
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
2
Damir Očko
Untitled, 2013
Collage, 98,5 x 70,5 cm
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
1
2
3
19
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
3
Damir Očko
Untitled, 2013
Photo print on archival
paper, 140 x 105 cm
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
1
2
1
Damir Očko
The Third Degree, 2015
Picture from the film set
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
2
Damir Očko
The Third Degree, 2015
Picture from the film set
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
20
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
Visual available on demand at /
Vizualni materijali dostupni su na zahtjev na:
croatian.pavilion.venice@gmail.com
1
Damir Očko
Untitled (writings of
Giuseppe Ianuzzi), 2013
Pencil on paper
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
2
Damir Očko
Untitled (writings of
Giuseppe Ianuzzi), 2013
Pencil on paper
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
3
Damir Očko
Untitled (writings of
Giuseppe Ianuzzi), 2013
Pencil on paper
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
1
3
2
21
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
1
Damir Očko
TK, 2014
Film still, 4K transferred to
HD video, 19’48’’
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
3
Damir Očko
The Third Degree, 2015
Film still, 4k transferred to
HD video, 11’
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
2
Damir Očko
TK, 2014
Film still, 4K transferred to
HD video, 19’48’’
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
4
Damir Očko
The Third Degree, 2015
Film still, 4k transferred to
HD video, 11’
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
1
5
Damir Očko
The Third Degree, 2015
Film still, 4k transferred to
HD video, 11’
Courtesy the artist and
Tiziana Di Caro, Naples
2
3
4
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Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
5
Biographies
/
Životopisi
THE ARTIST
UMJETNIK
Damir Očko (b. 1977, lives and works
in Zagreb) is one of the most prominent
Croatian artist of his generation. His videos,
films, poetry and works on paper have been
exhibited recently in Temple Bar Gallery in
Dublin (2014), KM - Künstlerhaus Halle für
Kunst & Medien in Graz (2014), Yvon Lambert
gallery in Paris (2013), Palais de Tokyo in Paris
(2012), Galleria Tiziana Di Caro in Salerno
(2012), and Kunsthalle Dusseldorf (2011).
Damir Očko (1977., živi i radi u Zagrebu)
jedan je od najistaknutijih hrvatskih umjetnika
svoje generacije. Njegovi videoradovi, filmovi,
poezija te radovi na papiru recentno su izlagani
u Galeriji Temple Bar u Dublinu (2014.), KM –
Künstlerhaus Halle für Kunst & Medien u Grazu
(2014.), Galeriji Yvon Lamber u Parizu (2013.),
Palais de Tokyo u Parizu (2012.), Galeriji Tiziana
Di Caro u Salernu (2012.), Kunsthalle Düsseldorf
(2011.).
He participated in numerous collective exhibitions with institutions such as
MUDAM, Luxembourg, FRAC Le Plateau
in Paris, Kunsthalle Wien, and Museum of
Contemporary Art in Zagreb among others.
His works are part of many public and
private collections around the world.
Sudjelovao je na brojnim skupnim
izložbama u institucijama poput MUDAM-a u
Luxembourgu, FRAC Le Plateau u Parizu, Kunsthalle Wien, Muzeja suvremene umjetnosti u
Zagrebu te mnogim drugima. Njegovi se radovi
nalaze u brojnim privatnim i javnim zbirkama
diljem svijeta.
THE CURATOR
Marc Bembekoff is currently Director of
Centre d’art contemporain La Halle des bouchers
in Vienne (Isère, France). He previously served as
curator at Palais de Tokyo (2011 - 13) and Musée
Rodin (2009 - 10), assistant curator at Frac
Champagne-Ardenne (2007 - 09) and film assistant curator at Centre Pompidou (1999 - 2003).
As an independent curator, he organized
numerous exhibitions including projects with
the collective Le Bureau/. He has contributed to
several monographic publications and exhibition
catalogues. Since 2013, he’s been part of the
artistic Board of Flag-France Foundation (Paris).
24
Damir Očko — Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
KUSTOS
Marc Bembekoff je direktor Centra za
suvremenu umjetnost La Halle des bouchers u
Vienneu (Isère, Francuska). Prije toga radio je kao
kustos za Palais de Tokyo (2011. – 2013.) i Muzej
Rodin (2009. – 2010.), pomoćnik kustosa Regionalnoga fonda za suvremenu umjetnost FRAC Champagne-Ardenne (2007. – 2009.) i pomoćnik kustosa
za film Centra Pompidou (1999. – 2003.).
Kao nezavisni kustos organizirao je brojne
izložbe, uključujući projekte s kolektivom Le Bureau/.
Autor je tekstova u nekoliko monografija i izložbenih
kataloga. Član je umjetničkoga vijeća zaklade FlagFrance Foundation (Pariz) od 2013. godine.