Niko Mihaljević je umjetnik, grafički dizajner i predavač. Zanima ga svakodnevno i onostrano, bilježenje i arhiviranje, eksperimentalna zvučna kompozicija i izvedba, pop muzika i avangarda, jezik i tipografija, humor i apsurd. Neki njegovi radovi su: permutacijska net-art kompozicija s trajanjem od 130 godina; osnivanje Muzeja kristalne lubanje; eksperimentalna karaoke izvedba za improvizacijsko zviždukanje; filozofski dijalog koji dokazuje da je otok Prvić kopno sa svih strana okruženo morem. Magistrirao je na Werkplaats Typografie (ArtEZ Institute of the Arts) u Arnhemu, Nizozemskoj. Dobitnik je Nagrade Radoslav Putar (Young Visual Artists Awards). Radi kao samostalni dizajner te kao docent na odjelu Medijskog dizajna na Sveučilištu Sjever.
Niko Mihaljević is an artist, graphic designer and lecturer. He is interested in the ordinary and the metaphysical, documenting and archiving, experimental sound composition and performance, pop music and the avant-garde, language and typography, humor and the absurd. Some of his works include: a permutational net-art composition with a duration of 130 years; the founding of the Museum of the Crystal Skull; an experimental karaoke performance for improvisational whistling; and a philosophical dialogue proving that the Adriatic island of Prvić is a landmass completely surrounded by sea. He earned his master’s degree at Werkplaats Typografie (ArtEZ Institute of the Arts) in Arnhem, Netherlands. He is a recipient of the Radoslav Putar Award (Young Visual Artists Awards). He works as a freelance designer and as an assistant professor in the Department of Media Design at the University North.
Niko Mihaljević
Napusti zdjelu i kreni prema ptici (vraćam se odmah) / katalog, 2024. / Abandon the Bowl and Go Towards the Bird (I'll Be Right Back) / catalog, 2024
Anti-ambijent ceremonijalnih cigareta / izvođenje kataloga s Ivanom Bojanić / Anti-ambient of Ceremonial Cigarettes / performance of the catalog with Ivana Bojanić
Izdavač: Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Studentski centar u Zagrebu / Kultura / Publisher: University of Zagreb, Student Center in Zagreb / Culture
Autorski koncept i dizajn knjige: Niko Mihaljević / Concept and design of the book: Niko Mihaljević
Suradnici: Marija Ančić (crtež), Geneviève Dupont Žuti (konzultacije i reprodukcije radova), Tea Kantoci (kustoska i urednička podrška), Bojan Krištofić (istraživačka podrška), Marko Maras (engleski prijevod), Bojan Mrđenović (fotografija). / Collaborators: Marija Ančić (drawing), Geneviève Dupont Žuti (consultations and reproduction of works), Tea Kantoci (curatorial and editorial support), Bojan Krištofić (research support), Marko Maras (English translation), Bojan Mrđenović (photography).
“Anti-ambijent ceremonijalnih cigareta”, 2024. / Anti-ambient of Ceremonial Cigarettes, 2024
Tekst / Partitura: Niko Mihaljević / Text / Music: Niko Mihaljević
Glazba i izvedba: Ivana Bojanić (glas) i Niko Mihaljević (organetto) / Music and performance: Ivana Bojanić (voice) and Niko Mihaljević (organetto)
Napusti zdjelu i kreni prema ptici (vraćam se odmah) naslov je kataloga suptilne i neuhvatljive izložbe Nike Mihaljevića postavljene početkom 2024. u Galeriji SC, koja je prošla bez službenog otvorenja ili pismenog traga o autoru unutar postava. Katalog, kao i izložba koja mu je prethodila, posvećena je zaboravljenom radu konceptualnog slikara Ivana Žutog naziva “Nestajanje Galerije SC (Sedam sunaca)”, happeningu održanom 1972. godine tijekom kojeg je zgrada Galerije SC na kratko vrijeme iščeznula pred očima publike.
Nastao uz uredničku podršku Tee Kantoci, katalog dokumentira izložbeni postav kroz fotografiju Bojana Mrđenovića, a osim toga sadrži i: reprodukciju izgubljenog rada “Nestajanje Galerije SC” Ivana Žutog i jedine objavljene kritike o radu; snapshot Geneviève Dupont Žuti, partnerice Ivana Žutog u Galeriji SC; kroki crteže happeninga Ivana Žutog iz 1972. čija je autorica umjetnica Marija Ančić; modni editorijal za francuske derby cipele Jacques Solovière te, umjesto pogovora, eksperimentalni tekst u oulipovskoj maniri – abecednu listu svih riječi preuzetih iz likovne kritike koju je o izložbi napisala povjesničarka umjetnosti Jozefina Ćurković – koji postaje partitura za eksperimentalnu muzičku izvedbu.
Iako postoji kao samostalni objekt, katalog se po potrebi aktivira kroz izvedbu. Partituru pod nazivom “Anti-ambijent ceremonijalnih cigareta”, odnosno stranice 36-41 iz kataloga, interpretiraju umjetnica i vokalistica Ivana Bojanić (glas) i Niko Mihaljević (organetto). U eksperimentalnoj izvedbi trajanja oko četrdeset minuta, Bojanić ispjevava sve riječi s liste, od “a” do “žutoga”, koristeći različite vokalne stilove, od uzvika do suptilnog ornamentiranja. U tome ju prati organetto – prijenosne orgulje koje su na vrhuncu popularnosti bile u 15. stoljeću. Zvuk organetta, ugođenog u modificiranu Ptolemejevu intenzivnu dijatonsku ljestvicu, kreće se od ritmičkih disonantnih tonskih klastera do kvaziliturgijskih dronova i apstraktnog cvileža. Tijekom ove muzičke interakcije vokabular dekonstruirane likovne kritike prelazi u apstraktnu domenu osjećajnog – ironijski odmak se rasplinjava, jezik se rastvara, a značenje transcendira.
Abandon the Bowl and Go Towards the Bird (I'll Be Right Back) is the title of the catalogue for Niko Mihaljević's subtle and understated exhibition set up in 2024 at SC Gallery, without an official opening or any written trace about the author. The catalogue, like the exhibition that preceded it, is dedicated to the forgotten work of the conceptual painter Ivan Žut titled Disappearance of the SC Gallery (Seven Suns), a happening held in 1972 during which the SC Gallery building briefly vanished before the eyes of the public.
Edited by Tea Kantoci, the catalogue features photographs by Bojan Mrđenović, and also includes: a reproduction of the lost work The Disappearance of SC Gallery by Ivan Žuti and the only published critique of the work; a snapshot of Geneviève Dupont Žuti, Ivan Žuti's partner at SC Gallery; croquis drawings of Ivan Žuti's 1972 happening by the artist Marija Ančić; a fashion editorial featuring French Jacques Solovière derby shoes; and, instead of an afterword, an experimental text in the Oulipo manner – an alphabetical list of all words taken from the art historical critique of the exhibition written by art historian Jozefina Ćurković – which becomes a score for an experimental musical performance.
Although it exists as a standalone object, the catalogue is brought to life through performance when required. The score entitled Anti-ambient of Ceremonial Cigarettes or pages 36-41 of the catalogue, is interpreted by artist and vocalist Ivana Bojanić (voice) and Niko Mihaljević (organetto). In an experimental performance lasting around forty minutes, Bojanić chants all the words from the list, from “a“ to “žuto/yellow“, using various vocal styles, from exclamations to subtle ornamentation. She is accompanied by the organetto – a portable organ that was at the height of its popularity in the 15th century. The sound of the organetto, tuned to a modified Ptolemaic intense diatonic scale, ranges from rhythmic dissonant tone clusters to quasi-liturgical drones and abstract wailing. During this musical interaction, the vocabulary of the deconstructed art critique transitions into the abstract domain of the emotional – the ironic distance dissolves, language disintegrates, and meaning transcends.
