What kind of reaction would you like to provoke in the viewers?
I want to provoke the opening of one’s mind or perception to something that s/he has
maybe not thought of, or experienced, or was not aware of before. Although my experience
tells me that art cannot quickly change social or political reality, it’s important
that it is not apolitical. Art sometimes opens up certain questions; it can even offer
different value systems from current mainstream trends.
During last summer, for example, I did three works embodying, with a bit of irony and
(black) humour, the frustration of dealing with the world when you have a Yugoslavian
passport. The first was “Illegal Border Crossing,” a three-day action on the
Slovenian/Austrian border. “Waiting for a Visa” took place in front of the
Austrian consulate in Belgrade--a six hours queuing action, with no results. Finally,
“Looking for a husband with EU passport” was an interactive web project [link], still in
progress.Was it your first Internet project?
My “Three/Free postcards” project, 2000, is also connected to the web
www.galerija.skuc-drustvo.si/ostojic. The statements are in Serbian ("I do not allow
my work to be used by the leading politics!”), in German Austrian ("I don’t
want my art work to be used as a proof of political pluralism" - I did it when I was
invited to exhibit in Carinthia, the area where Georg Haider is most popular) and in
Albanian ("I do not want my work to be used for the purposes of political
trends"): this critical statement was initiated by an informal invitation to
participate in the new Biennale of Tirana, which is, in my opinion, pretty
“politically correct” idea.
Do you feel any specific closeness to any performer
of the past generation? You titled “Josephine Beuys” one of your actions.
The early works of Ulay fascinate me; he used to integrate himself entirely into marginal
social groups, like homeless people. I also like Joseph Beuys’ projects against the
system, his lectures and talks. Actually, I did two actions inspired by him. Beuys
organized the “Box Match for Direct Democracy” with the dean of Düsseldorf Art
Academy. I did mine with the policemen on the streets of Belgrade in 1997, during a
three-day-and-night-long blockade of the main square. Offering boxing gloves, I asked them
to fight directly for democracy; no one accepted, so I did promotional mach in front of
cordon with a friend.
Josephine Beuys first appeared, as far as I know, in 1973, when Beuys signed his letter to
the influential Serbian artist Rasa Todosijevic –Your Josephine. I took that name,
with all its magic, and gave appearance to my complex, contradictory Josephine, who
integrated two biographies: during WW II, Beuys was a pilot of the German army, serving a
totalitarian regime; I spent my “best years” in a totalitarian system, as a
pilot’s (and ex-military pilot) daughter. She was half dressed as a Hitler-jugend
girl and half as a German pilot, with a red Beuys stamp on her back and a huge smile. I
stood for three hours at the entrance of the Museum of Modern Art’s Salon in
Belgrade, shaking hands with all the visitors.
In another performance, you fought with your
brother. What is "aggression” for you?
“Hopscotch” (1996) is a very important performance for me. It presented two
parallel streams of survival: of myself as artist, and of my younger brother Bojan, as a
kick boxer. During the last decade Mafia suffocated Yugoslavian sports; for that reason,
my brother left kickboxing at 21, despite being the Yugoslavian and Balkans champion,
European Golden Kick-Boxer and World vice-champion. I had to cry to persuade him to combat
with me and to promise I’d be properly dressed (he didn’t like at all my shaved,
naked performances). My brother and I belong to very different social groups and have
opposite personalities: I was happy to underline the beauty of our differences, to let two
different energies explode inside the gallery space.
“What is aggressiveness?” would be interesting to
ask bosses of TV stations, politicians and advertising executives. I was interested in
analysing how the particular aggressiveness that was in the air in Yugoslavia could be
carried and transformed by individuals.
How important is the staging, the theatrical
dimension of your work?
For me authenticity and preciseness are very important. In most of the actions I have
done, I used only elements already existing on location. For example, in 1998, I developed
the project "Etre une princesse"/“Being a princess” – for/in the
Château Beaumanoir. It was a small edition of 11 colour photographs of me dressed in 19th
century clothes and underwear from the castle. I posed in the bedroom, bathroom, dining
room and the garden. Works were then hung in original Saint Pierre’s family wooden
frames, in the Pink Salon. This project deals with French history, my hosts’ family
tradition, my own identity and the dreams of every little girl. By the way, the Count and
Countess loved it; we even printed some postcards afterwards… |
