The work of art as seduction asks to be superceded and seduced in turn by the brilliance of each and all – it demands reciprocity. (Hakim Bey)
Each work is thus an intervention, not only into the gallery space, but also into the very institution of the exhibition as the manifestation of the artistic and curatorial undertaking at the moment of its completion and perfection and its public presentation at the point when it reaches the peak of representability. \’Exhibiting\’ involves a more or less stable economy of exchange, and here it is based exactly on the unstable dynamics of giving and loss, constant negotiation among the protagonists in the process, as well as the encounter or clash of expectations of everyone involved towards one another and towards themselves, along with the possible frustrations resulting from their unsuccessful realization. Everyone is visibly dependent on each other and are in a constant process of negotiating, role exchange, transfer of responsibility and reciprocities.
Institutions and curators have expectations from the artists, the artists expect something in return from curators and institutions, donators, sponsors and the audience (which is, again, expected not to be merely a \’passive\’ audience) have their own expectations regarding the institutions and the content they are presenting etc. In this space of intertwined expectations, a field of multiplied mutualities is being established, allowing occasionally for an absurd play of positions, which could also be interpreted as an institutionalization of power during which the play is legitimized by placing and confronting the protagonists in a dialogue. In the context of the independant, non profit art scene, however, clear delineations between positions are often missing – critics, curators, artists etc. are all in the position of freelance cultural workers. Lacking stable forms of organization and institutionalization (primarily on the levels of cultural policy and economy), all cultural workers are often, in one way or the other, simultaneously exposed to the pressures of expectations of highly professional execution and the relentless exploitation of its labor.
The artist/cultural worker is thus always ready for action, always enthusiastic enough, energetic and, above all, a flexible social entrepreneur who, despite the fact that he/she often covers several different segments of creative production, he/she nonetheless keeps gathering strength from his/her infatuation with the mere possibilities of participation in the processes of production of symbolic values.
. . .
In the performance PUNISHMENT, Sinisa Labrovic is playing with the fragile dynamics of expectation and desire, primarily in the relation between artist and audience. As an artist-cultural worker, he is also ready to take action, ready to satisfy the audience\’s desire for content and spectacle, which is here inseparable from the artist\’s own desire for audience and fulfilling of their expectations. Just as he states in his descriptive CV summarizing his work, Labrovic is also here exhibiting \’a little bit of himself, a little bit of others and other\’. The other that is being exhibited in PUNISHMENT is exactly the unresolved interdependency of self and other. Following on the track of performance artists from the 60s and 70s, Labrovic subverts the idea of artist as autonomous creator and subject, intertwining the positions of performer and viewer, as well as the subject and object of the punishment suggested by the title.
(Ivana Bago & Antonia Majaca)
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PUNISHMENT, performance
So far I have performed PUNISHMENT twice, once in O.K. Gallery in Rijeka, once in Belgrade during The East European Show, in a space whose name I can\’t recall. Due partly to my own ignorance, and partly to the inadequate space, I have never succeeded to properly perform this piece – the piece that I hold very dearly because no matter what, it is still mine. Furthermore, I possess no documentation of it, and without documentation today, I realized in the meantime, you aren\’t worth a plug nickel, you are a stray dog in the rain.
Besides, I wanted to get hold of the Galerija Miroslav Kraljevic as such.
Then it occurred to me that the gallery\’s layout would be perfect for this work and that here, by doing one performance, I could satisfy all three above mentioned ambitions.
Punishment was made when I started wondering why everyone has started beating and terrorizing themselves like crazy. I realized it was something that attracted attention, so I decided to do such a piece myself and get some attention; being, at the same time, somewhat timid, I thought it might be good if it wasn\’t entirely such. So, I put together these two opposite inclinations into one.
And the audience is very important here as well. God helps out the third time. I hope.
(Sinisa Labrovic)
. . .
Sinisa Labrovic was born on 12 February, 1965 in Sinj, Croatia. Baptized. Finished the \’Frano Masnic\’ elementary school, received the sacraments of holy communion and confirmation, then went on to finish the \’August 10\’. Highschool. After 12 years of studying at the university, mostly in Zagreb, became teacher of Croatian language and literature. Had a job, then lost the job, and 29 times like that, then moved to Zagreb as of recently. Because Zagreb offers much bigger possibilities, and because Zagreb is Zagreb.
Exibits since the year 2000, a litlle bit of himself, a little bit of others and other.
Occasionally, here and there.
