Amnesia is the constant sea, we swim in it all the time!, John Akomfrah

The work depicts a landscape in its disappearance, i.e. its new formation. This is a reaction to a continuous negligence and destruction of Slavonia, as a part of a greater whole, which is, from its own perspective, left to its own devices, and is dying as such. Political apathy has led to a state where a part of Croatia, once potentiated as the bread basket of Europe, is turning into a desert or the very thing it once was – the bottom of the Pannonian Sea, in its essence muddy and fertile. Planned emigration, long-term expatriation of the populace, the indifference of the centralized government have led to an almost complete resignation of the general population of these parts, because “I suppose that’s the way it has to be…” – to allude to a phrase so commonly used in the aforementioned region.

The three-channel video installation presents us with three different spaces, three exteriors which form one compositional whole. The view is dominated by the line of the horizon, metaphorically speaking a line that directly alludes to the abovementioned resignation, almost a lifelessness. Aside from the dominant image, i.e. the video, a key part in this work is also given to the sound which has been recorder in situ, and as such potentiates the loudness of the figure who is observing the visitor of the exhibition. In each of the spaces the static figure (the observer) who observes the situation is present and, by observing the visitor, presents them with a question of “where and how to move on?” I problematize the “observation” (of violence, education, problems, people…) and the static attitude in moments when a reaction to a particular problem is needed (social, economic, communal…). How much longer are we ready to observe while situations arise around us that directly or indirectly reflect on our present or future?

After all, is there a difference between the one who is “actively” observing us and the resigned observer? Everyone acts in their own way (passively or actively).

The war is not yet over. Everything we have survived, everything the war left us that was directly visible, all of that merely opened a certain space, it started a program which is still being executed, only not so obviously, it no longer has a structure of they are still targeting us, but still certainly represents aggression, the plan for destruction which is no less dangerous than artillery, and all of those who lose their lives because of it will have died a violent death.” Marković pauses, perhaps a reaction to her worried and somewhat frightened look. “Do you understand, no one will lose an arm or a leg, an organ or their life in a flash anymore, nothing will be so loud and so spectacular as the autumn of 1991 was, but the direct effects of those times are still in motion, at full blast, and everyone thinks, everyone so naively thinks that the peril has passed, that the general danger could have so easily been cancelled… Luka Bekavac, “Drenje”.

Amnesia is the constant sea, we swim in it all the time!, John Akomfrah

Trokanalna videoinstalacija tri su različita prostora, tri eksterijera (minirana šuma, neobrađeno polje i dio napuštenog sela) koji čine jednu kompozicijsku cjelinu. Dominantna je linija horizonta, metaforički gledano linija koja upravo asocira na gore navedenu rezignaciju, gotovo beživotnost. Osim dominantne slike, odnosno videa, u ovom radu ključan je i zvuk koji je snimljen in situ i kao takav potencira glasnoću lika koji promatra posjetitelja izložbe. U svakom prostoru prisutan je statični lik (promatrač) koji promatra situaciju te gledajući posjetitelja izložbe postavlja pitanje kamo, gdje i kako dalje.

Rad prikazuje krajolik u svojemu nestajanju, odnosno novom nastajanju. Reakcija je to na kontinuirano zanemarivanje i destrukciju Slavonije kao dijela cjeline koji je, gledano iz vlastite perspektive, prepušten samome sebi i kao takav odumire. Politička apatija dovela je do toga da se dio Hrvatske, nekada potenciran kao žitnica Europe, pretvara u pustinju ili u ono što je nekad bio – dno Panonskog mora, u svojoj srži muljevit i plodan. Planirano iseljavanje, dugoročni odlazak stanovnika, nebriga centralistički nastrojene vlasti doveli su do gotovo potpune rezignacije žitelja koji obitavaju na ovim prostorima najčešće uz frazu valjda tako mora biti.

U radu problematiziram promatranje i statičnost u trenutcima kada je potrebna reakcija na rastuće društvene, ekonomske i ostale probleme.

Dokle smo spremni i voljni samo promatrati dok se oko nas događaju situacije koje se izravno ili neizravno odražavaju na našu sadašnjost i budućnost?

Rat još nije završen. Sve što smo preživjeli, sve od rata što je bilo neposredno vidljivo, sve je to samo otvorilo jedan prostor, pokrenulo program koji se još uvijek izvršava, samo što više nije toliko očit, više nema strukturu toga da još uvijek nišane na nas, ali još uvijek svakako predstavlja agresiju, plan uništenja koji nije ništa manje opasan od artiljerije, i svi koji zbog njega izgube život zapravo će umrijeti nasilnom smrću.“ Marković zastane, možda reagirajući na njezin zabrinut, već pomalo i uplašen pogled. “Razumijete, nitko više neće u hipu ostati bez ruke ili noge, ili nekog organa, ili života, više ništa neće biti tako glasno i tako spektakularno kao što je bila jesen 1991., ali neposredni efekti toga vremena još uvijek traju, puno snagom, a svi misle, svi tako naivno misle da je opasnost prošla, da se opća opasnost mogla tek tako odjaviti…, Luka Bekavac, „Drenje“