“Trembling” presents the video work HOME in an adapted and somewhat modified form. It involves a camera’s journey through the space of a miniature home which is projected in a new way, adapting to a different location: the backstage of the theater, which gently distorts and fragments the projection. At the same time, several miniature dioramas of spaces, which are also part of the HOME project, are presented on stage. Within the context of this performance conference, they are adjusted to the theme of trembling and subtle vibrations that occur within the home. The miniatures are placed on the floor, displayed in all their vulnerability, and are an invitation for the audience to touch and interact with these fragile structures.
The illusion of cinematic space and the illusion of the home’s safety are called into question when exposed to external influences and forces, such as political, weather-related, tectonic, and other shifts and changes. The fragility of miniatures in such conditions reflects the literal fragility of larger, established structures that we consider a “safe” refuge.
The PERFORMANCE CONFERENCE is a specific format that intertwines performance and presentation, connecting artists, critics, and theorists from various fields (visual arts, theater, dance, music, literature, new media…) and the audience without hierarchy. It has proven to be an ideal platform for transforming collective vulnerability through empathy and deeper understanding of the shared human experience and the experience of art. According to the impressions of past participants, the concept of equality implicitly includes presenters/performers and the audience, and it emerges as a template for building and nurturing a stronger creative-reception community.
Four prominent female artists of image and sound gather in the spaces of the Zagreb Youth Theater, contextualizing their works within the theme of trembling and establishing a dialogue among them. The conference transforms into an ambient installation of reflection and resonance of four visions and voices, inspiring active participation from the audience, which is both empathetic and critical.
In constant questioning, self-reflective oscillation, and mutation, where solid definitions give way to description and connection, the performance conference itself becomes a metaphor for trembling. We contemplate this multilayered theme as the essence of the encounter between the artwork and its recipient. From art, we demand to be touched and shaken in direct contact, to unsettle what has become complacent and continue to flicker within us—to disrupt the image on the screen of the world in a fertile manner.
Organised by Četveroruka/Fourhanded, Marina Petković
ZeKaeM (Zagreb Youth Theater) Zagreb, Croatia,14.1.2024, 5 – 10pm
Lea Vidaković: Tremblings
Manja Ristić: Chronology of Fear
Tina Hofman: Ananas is Always Ananas but Pineapple in English
Selma Banich: Voices Short Break 19:35 – 22:00 Performance Dialogue with all Participants
