alternative art guide

Anica Vučetić

Since 1999 she is working on video installations and environments, exploring unconsciousness, dreams, psychological processes as well as archetypal symbols. Experimenting with different projection-surfaces and screens she is undertaking an examination of real and virtual space locating the observers specific positions. I attempt to transform and materialize the inner theatre from mental screen to the outer space, so that the observer is provided with a complex territory to question the relationship to his own sub-consciousness.

Radoš Antonijević

Educated as a classical sculptor, re-examines the medium of sculpture and its borders through the creation of artworks which problematize the questions of function, materiality and perception. This formal research is always involved in the topics that touch neuralgic points of life, dealing with the aspects of history, politics, culture and society. His works of art which confront the function and shape have the epic nature with the ingredients of comic and tragic in the same picture. This epic nature is evident in his need for monumental and self-sufficient forms which can be seen in his tents-churches, personal museums of contemporary art or a church military barbecue trailer.

Selman Trtovac

The work of Selman Trtovac has begun to develop at a time of all well known terrible circumstances and events from the last decade of 20th century in Yugoslavia, as an indirect but undoubtedly the artist’s intimate, human, and in the final instance political reaction to those circumstances and events which he could not more effectively in reality oppose expect with artistic symbolic acting. In stead of being just the work of this artist, his work is almost a sublimation of a superindividual and common generational existential experience.

All three artists, among other, are highly contributed to the creation of a artistic micro utopia Third Belgrade.

Third Belgrade is an art group functioning upon a model of agricultural cooperative from old socialistic traditions.
TB is an applied example of the artistic expression of ethics.
TB is an event in itself, a radical attempt of practical implementation of collaborative art gathering.
TB is a building, gallery, residential space for artists, studio and an organization of visual artists.
TB is a conceptual framework for exploring of the politicization strategies of contemporary art.
TB is not trying to work within the idea of global political project, but the field of micro politics instead.
TB is a manifestation of our civic responsibility.
Third Belgrade is our art work!

Third Belgrade emerged from group of artists’ response to the many issues found in art and society today, the need to create a new micro-utopia, a new parallel world within the micro political context; to create artistic cradle network platform to connect with similar artistic initiatives; to enable artists overcome the problems of fragmentation, manipulation and instrumentation generated by political and economic power.

The name Third Belgrade derives from the urban planning denomination of the part of the city situated across the left bank of the river Danube, which is mostly rural and culturally irrelevant. This is the only artistic initiative ever to develop on the grounds best known as a working class slum on the borders of river’s swamp lands.

Third Belgrade is an initiative of eight artists: Salman Trtovac, Anica Vucetić, Radoš Antonijević, Milorad Mladenović, Oliver Parlić, Sanja Latinović, Rankop Đanković, Marina Marković and Marko Marković.

This is a group of artists with similar artistic sensibility and political inclinations. At the core of their initiative is the drive to alter the position of artists within society, by giving them the possibility to act on their convictions right now.

Third Belgrade is designed as a lively, dynamic and energetic center which brings together local artists with those from the region and the world, providing exhibition space, workshops and other educational content for general public. TB space consists of central gallery, the library, the club, as well as lounge spaces and residential premises suitable for lectures and workshops, and the garden used an open stage for various art events.

Leszek Przyjemski and Anastazy Wiśniewski, ‘Individual Meetings’ @ Sigma Gallery, Warsaw 1972

Leszek Przyjemski

In 1966 Jerzy Ludwiński, art historian, critic, theoretician and curator, described in the essay titled ‘The Bubble with Painting’ a new spontaneous and unofficial artist movement, demonstrated in the number of conventions, meetings, conferences, plein-airs and other sessions held throughout what was then called People’s Republic of Poland.

However, some of the people involved were expressing a belief that the admired spontaneity was in fact pre-arrangement. Just like Anastazy Wiśniewski did through the act of establishing the Centre for Artistic Silence in the framework of Nonexistent Nodding Gallery ‘YES’, which he founded together with Leszek Przyjemski in 1970.

Leszek Przyjemski and Anastazy Wiśniewski, ‘Individual Meetings’ @ Sigma Gallery, Warsaw 1972

Two years later they organized ‘Individual Meetings’, in reference to the meetings for candidates for The Polish United Workers’ Party. Applicants were interviewed one at time in the room covered with a fabric alike Polish national flag, and completely jammed by the sound of ‘L’Internationale’.

Leszek Przyjemski — ‘Private shows’ — Nonexistent Nodding Gallery ‘YES’, 1974-75

Leszek Przyjemski — ‘Shows’ — Nonexistent Nodding Gallery ‘YES’, 1974

Leszek Przyjemski (b. 1942), one of the leading Polish artists who contested the official system of art in communist Poland in the 70s., during 1st International Nonexistenting Galleries Congress in Brzezno by Gdańsk put forward the idea of the Museum of Hysterics 1968–1975. Concept of establishing Museum was born a few years before, in June 12th, 1968 when Przyjemski graduated from the Art School, and to celebrate this fact he drowned a puppet dressed in the suit, with his MA diploma in the pocket.

Leszek Przyjemski and Anastazy Wiśniewski. ‘Party proposes’ — Nonexistent Nodding Gallery ‘YES’, 1972

Leszek Przyjemski — ‘Programme’ — Nonexistent Nodding Gallery ‘YES’, 1970

Since then Museum of Hysterics, the metamuseum in a way, is possible to explore, and visit with ones imagination, it is giving the most extreme idea for what we could recognize as an artist-run-space.

Above images courtesy of CoCA in Torun.

Janek Simon, ‘Lagos Transfer’ (fragment) @ Muzeum Sztuki, Lodz 2011

Janek Simon

In a way a follower of Przyjemskis’ self-management, who devoted himself to DIY philosophy and alternative strategies is an artist born in 1977 Janek Simon. Trained in sociology, as well as psychology, an author of the ‘Polish Year in Madagascar’ (2006) the first exhibition of contemporary Polish art in this country, without actual works by Polish artists, but with some pieces by Romanian, Bulgarian, Czech and Slovakian creators, instead.

Janek Simon, ‘The Polish Year in Madagascar’, exhibition poster, 2006

By the act of not choosing any fellows, Simon – the self-proclaimed one-man Foreign Affairs Department – aped official cultural policy strategies based on the posh, but at the same time very poor and unproductive events. To emphasize his perverse gesture, and to bring it to another level of international competition he rented as an exhibition space a spot in the Goethe-Zentrum neighborhood.

Janek Simon, ‘The Polish Year in Madagascar’, exhibition poster @ Antananativo 2006

Janek Simon, ‘National Budget for 2010’ (fragment) @ PGS, Sopot 2011

In 2011 Simon produced in a 400 square meters gallery space the 3D visualization of the Polish ‘State Budget for Year 2010’. The artist through translating national economy issues into arts language is again playing with an understanding of the boundaries between aesthetic and politic. On the one hand this act could be understood as a call for the civil society to have a closer look into what was reserved for specialized eyes only, but on the other hand is it true that contemporary arts vocabulary is easier for a average citizen then economy.

Janek Simon, ‘Entry of the Goldex Poldex delegation to city’ (modification on an illuminated manuscript), 2010

Simon is also one of the founder members of cooperative Goldex Poldex which ‘acts in the Pi-sector of cultural production, in the unexplored fractional dimension with no intend to collaborate with neither public institutions nor the art market. It seeks no sponsors and no patronage.’ Unlike Przyjemski, who was practicing resistance against socialism, Simon is in opposition to capitalism and what he calls grant-art.

Janek Simon, ‘Janek Was Here’(drawing on an archival print), 2010

Honza Zamojski

Honza Zamojski (b.1981) an author of drawings, video art, spatial objects including ready-mades, curator and the owner of publishing house MORAVA, represents an individualistic approach, with a perspective based on the micro rather than macro politics.

For his graduation he edited and designed book titled ‘We Came From Beyond/We Go Far Beyond’, which combines statements of young artists and curators on search for the answer ‘Why I’m doing this, and for whom?’, with an exhibition catalog format.

He is interested in the human motivation for creation, as well as exploring history thought private stories, what he demonstrates in the books ‘Jak jsem potkal d’abla’ (awarded in 2011 on Best Book Design from all over the World in Lipsk), and ‘Rymy jak Dymy’. All mentioned publications create a kind of unusual trilogy, which as a whole tells a story of ones development as an artist, poet, and citizen.

‘BOOKIE’, curated by Honza Zamojski @ Piktogram/BLA, Warsaw 2011

In 2011 Zamojski curated BOOKIE – a show devoted to redefining a self-publishing practices with a printed matter never presented in Poland before, e.g. by David Horvitz and Rick Myers artbooks, conceptual fanzines of the Institute of Social Hypocrisy or books by the Slavs and Tatars. Zamojski beside being an enterprising distributor, and promoter of printed matter by artists in Poland, is also a member of Starter Association – the body which had operated the gallery under the same name from 2007 until 2011 in Poznań as an artists’-and-curators’-run-space.

For over three years of its activity, Starter held over 50 shows of 72 artists in about 200 square meters abandoned apartment in Art Nouveau building.

Honza Zamojski, ‘Monumental Statues’ @ KIM? Contemporary Art Centre, Riga 2011

Honza Zamojski, ‘Me, Myself and I’ @ LETO Gallery, Warsaw 2011

Honza Zamojski, ‘Rhymes Like Dimes’ @ Views 2011 Deutsche Bank Foundation Competition, Zachęta National Gallery, Warsaw 2011

Above images courtesy of Honza Zamojski and Leto Gallery.

Agnieszka Pindera

I’m interested in the socialist past influence on Polish contemporary cultural policy, the lasting for years People’s Republic of Poland struggle against any independent enterprise and its, in my opinion, negative impact on the self-supported initiatives development nowadays. Tools used in this conflict were modified legislation, fines beyond ones capabilities, and corruption, as well as denying access to the higher education for craftsman’s children, and finally though language (number of derogatory epithets was invented at this time).

For the Alternative Art Guide I selected artists who present various approaches from imaginary, through activist, to intimate autobiographical narrations in the term of artist-run-spaces and mentalities.

Born in 1981 in Tarnów, Poland. Graduate in Cultural, Gender and Museum Curatorial Studies. 2008-2011 a curator at the Centre for Contemporary Art in Torun (CoCA). Selected exhibitions: ‘Berlegustopol’ curated with Michał Woliński, Piktogram/BLA in Warsaw, 2011, with: Yomar Augusto, Henryk Berlewi, Edward Hartwig, Fontarte, Polex-Expol, Zuo Corp; ‘Tag! Base! Hide& Seek!’ curated with Joanna van der Zanden, CoCA in Torun, 2010, with: Dinie Besems, Cynthia Hathaway, Guy Keulemans, Bartosz Mucha, Leonard van Munster, Eric von Robertson, Suzuki Affice; ‘The Past is a Foreign Country’ curated with Aleksandra Kononiuk, CoCA in Torun, 2009, with: Johanna Billing, Persijn Broersen & Margit Lukács, Banu Cennetoğlu, Šejla Kamerić, Deimantas Narkevičius, Agnieszka Polska, Jasper Rigole, Slavs and Tatars, Jutta Strohmaier, Levi van Veluw, Ingrid Wildi, Krzysztof Zieliński, Edwin Zwakman.

Anica Vučetić/Radoš Antonijević/Selman Trtovac