Viktor Popović je umjetnik koji živi i radi u Splitu. U svojim instalacijama i objektima često koristi pronađene predmete, arhivsku građu i sirove industrijske materijale pritom istražujući odnos umjetničkog djela i publike, te povijesnog i fizičkog konteksta izložbenog prostora. U recentnim radovima istražuje modernističko nasljeđe Hrvatske iz socijalističkog razdoblja, te se fokusira na rekontekstualizaciju arhitekture iz 1960-ih i 1970-ih godina. Izlagao je u galerijama, muzejima kao i u alternativnim izložbenim prostorima u Europi i SAD-u. Popović je diplomirao na Akademiji likovnih umjetnosti u Zagrebu i dobitnik je više uglednih stipendija i nagrada. Njegovi radovi nalaze se u kolekcijama značajnijih javnih institucija u Hrvatskoj, uključujući Muzej suvremene umjetnosti u Zagrebu, Galeriju umjetnina u Splitu, Galeriju umjetnina u Zadru i Laubu u Zagrebu. Osim vlastite umjetničke prakse, od 1998. predaje i kolegije slikarstva i crtanja na Slikarskom odsjeku Umjetničke akademije u Splitu, gdje je 2018. godine promaknut u trajno zvanje redovnog profesora.

Viktor Popović is an artist based in Split, Croatia. His artistic practice focuses mostly on installations and objects formed from appropriated and archival materials in combination with raw industrial materials that probe the relationship between the artwork and the audience or the historical or physical context of the exhibition venues. His recent work explores the Modernist heritage of the socialist period in Croatia and focuses on the re-contextualization of the 1960s and 1970s architecture. He has exhibited in numeorus galleries, museums an non-profit venues in the USA and throughout Europe. Popović is an MFA graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts, Zagreb, Croatia and has been awarded a number of distinguished grants and awards. His work has been collected by major public institutions throughout Croatia, including the Museum of Contemporary Art in Zagreb, Museum of Contemporary Art in Split, Gallery of Fine Arts in Zadar and Lauba in Zagreb. In addition to his artistic practice, he has been teaching Painting and Advanced Drawing courses at the Painting department of the Arts Academy in Split since 1998, where he was tenured and promoted to full professor in 2018.

 www.viktorpopovic.com

EX AEQUO
Viktor Popović
Bez naziva (Arhiv Zenčišće), 2020.
Untitled (Archive Zenčišće), 2020
inkjet ispisi na arhivskom papiru montirani na aluminijsku podlogu, filteri za korekciju boje
2 x 86 x 86 x 10 cm
arhivska fotografija: privatni arhiv, Beograd, Srbija (fotograf nepoznat)
inkjet ispis na papiru
dimenzije promjenjive
arhivska fotografija: razglednica Uprave dečjih letovališta i oporavilišta − Beograd, Turistička štampa Beograd, Srbija (fotograf nepoznat)

inkjet prints on archival paper mounted on aluminium composite panels, colour correction filters
2 x 86 x 86 x 10 cm
archival photograph: private archive, Belgrade, Serbia (photographer unknown)
inkjet prints on paper
dimensions variable
archival photograph: postcard of the Administration of children's summer resorts and rehabilitations centers – Belgrade, Turistička štampa Belgrade, Serbia (photographer unknown)

U fokusu ovog rada je nekadašnje beogradsko odmaralište i rehabilitacijski centar za djecu u zaljevu Zenčišće u Jelsi na otoku Hvaru, koje je trenutno gotovo u potpunosti u ruševinama, bez ikakve realne mogućnosti obnove. Krajem sedamdesetih godina izgradio ga je grad Beograd, a zamišljen je kao hibridno mjesto za odmaralište i rehabilitaciju, gdje su djeca mogla uživati u povoljnoj jadranskoj klimi tijekom cijele godine. Izvrsna arhitektura koja je poštivala krajolik i nudila sve potrebne sadržaje kao što su knjižnica, učionice, spavaonice, trgovine, zdravstvene ambulante, zatvoreni bazen, vanjska igrališta za nogomet, rukomet i košarku, skladišta itd. pokrivala je ukupnu površinu od 8.400 četvornih metara na površini zemljišta od 64.000 četvornih metara. Zatvoren je devedesetih godina prošlog stoljeća, a tijekom Domovinskog rata u njemu se smjestila Hrvatska vojska te kasnije izbjeglice. Zbog pitanja sukcesije država bivše Jugoslavije kompleks je bio predmet spora između Srbije i Hrvatske gotovo dva desetljeća te je do danas bio prepušten devastaciji i potpunoj entropiji. Predstavlja jedan od mnogih primjera na području bivše Jugoslavije u kojem su izvorno utopijske ideje i poimanja robe dostupna svima (tj. svoj djeci treba biti omogućen odmor i rehabilitacija uz more) kroz razdoblja rata i tranzicije postale paradigmatične distopijske strukture koje predstavljaju današnju kaotičnu društveno-ekonomsku situaciju. Paradoks dodatno naglašava činjenica da se arhitektonska struktura s takvim potencijalom prepušta propadanju na otoku Hvaru, koje je jedno od najmodernijih turističkih odredišta u Hrvatskoj.
(iz umjetnikove izjave)

In the focus of this work is the former Belgrade resort and rehabilitation center for children in the bay Zenčišće in Jelsa on the island of Hvar, today almost completely ruined, without any real possibility of reconstruction. It was built by the city of Belgrade in the late 1970s, and was conceived as a hybrid place for rest and rehabilitation, whre children could enjoy the favourable Adriatic climate throughout the year. Excellent architecture that takes the landscape into consideration and provided all necessary facilities such as a library, classrooms, dormitories, shops, infirmaries, indoor pool, outdoor foorball, handball and basketball courts, warehouses, etc. Covering the area of 8,400 square meters on the total area size of 64,000 square meters. It was closed in the 1990s, and during the Homeland War it housed the Croatian Army and later refugees. Due to the issue of succession of the sates of the former Yugoslavia, the complex was the subject of dispute between Serbia and Croatia for almost two decades, and to this day it has been left to devastation and complete entropy. It is one of many examples in the territory of the former Yugoslavia where originally utopian ideas and notions of goods available to all (i.e. that all children should have the opportunity for rest and rehabilitation by the sea) became paradigmatic dystopian structures through the periods of war and transition indicative of today's chaotic socioeconomic situation. The paradox is further emphasized by the fact that the architectural structure with such potential is left to decay on the island of Hvar, which is one of the most fashionable tourist destinations in Croatia.
(from the artist's statement)