Forgotten sculptors and contemporary voices

Ljiljana Karadzic is a curator and art historian, employed at the Public Institution “Museums and Galleries of Podgorica”, where she is engaged in research, selection and presentation of art collections, with a special focus on contemporary sculpture and the Montenegrin art scene. During her professional career, she has participated in numerous exhibition projects, as an author of concepts, curator and collaborator on the interpretation and valorization of museum collections. She pays special attention to contemporary approaches to presenting institutional art to the wider public. The exhibition “Cross-sections” - sculptures from the collection of the Public Institution “Museums and Galleries of Podgorica” represents part of her continuous work on the affirmation of forgotten, insufficiently researched or less visible segments of Montenegrin artistic heritage and was presented on Statehood Day, 13 July, in the church of Santa Maria in Punta as part of the XXXIX Grad teatar festival.

How did the idea for the exhibition "Crossroads" come about and what was your main inspiration when designing it?

Thanks to the kind invitation of the organizers of the Budva City Theatre Festival, which continuously has an outstanding art program, I was given the honor this year to curate an exhibition of works from the holdings of the Podgorica Museums and Galleries. When thinking about the concept of the exhibition, I had in mind the ambient potential of the Santa Maria in Punta church and works that would correspond well with that space. Therefore, the exhibition does not have a fixed theme, but my intention was to present a part of the sculpture holdings from the Podgorica museum. The choice of the medium of sculpture arose both from certain technical limitations of the church space, from personal affinities towards sculpture, and from an attempt to sketch the development of our sculpture scene through works from different periods.

Can you tell us more about the sculpture collection itself, when it dates back and what its significance is within the holdings of the Public Institution "Museums and Galleries of Podgorica"?

The sculpture collection is not a separate entity, but is part of the very interesting collection of the Modern Gallery within the Public Institution Museums and Galleries of Podgorica. This collection, which was formed more than 70 years ago, has about 800 museum objects (paintings, drawings, graphics and sculptures). The number of objects increases every year thanks to purchases and donations. The collection includes famous Yugoslav and Montenegrin artists from the second half of the XNUMXth century to the present day. The collection also includes several legacies, the most famous of which is the Legacy of the great sculptor Risto Stijović, whose works can be viewed in the “Risto Stijović” gallery, which is part of our museum.

What were the decisive criteria when selecting the works for this exhibition? Is there a thematic or stylistic connection between the exhibited works?

Each selected work is a layered, rounded work that impresses with its strength and persuasiveness. Thematic and stylistic classification of the exhibited works could be made through polarizations: figuration - abstract, organic form - geometry, expressive texture - polished, real - symbolic, local - global, intimate - public, but one should also keep in mind the works that include a whole repertoire of intersections and fusions of different approaches and poetics.

What is the significance of sculpture in the contemporary Montenegrin and regional context, especially within museum and gallery exhibitions?

It seems that sculpture has been somewhat overshadowed by painting for many years, because the easel painting in the Greenbergian sense has long been treated as the ultimate representative of modernism, especially in our country. The famous sentence, somewhat humorous, although essentially true, that sculpture is the thing that the observer stumbles upon when he moves away in a gallery to better view the painting, has long reflected the status of sculpture. However, thanks primarily to the authors, and then to the institutions that support, valorize and theoretically shape sculptural thought, the status of sculpture has gradually changed over time, so that today it is a highly positioned and equally represented medium in gallery spaces.

How did the “Crossings” exhibition communicate with the space of the church of Santa Maria in Punta, and how important was spatial design for the presentation of the works?

The exhibition communicates well with the space of the church, which is very stimulating. The works are placed so that each has enough space around it, which is filled with the aura of the work itself. On the other hand, fine interspaces have been created between the works, in which communication is established between them, but also with the space of the church. The settings are very important and go far beyond the common opinion that they represent a mere arrangement. When working on the display, the curator always has in mind many elements that he tries to synchronize: the relationship between the work and the space, the mutual relations of the works, the relationship of sizes, rhythm, dynamics, stylistic and linguistic combinations. It seems that, if the display is good, it can contribute to a better reading and understanding of the works, and vice versa, if it is bad.

Are any of the authors particularly represented, and is there a work that you would single out as particularly representative?

11 sculptors are represented, from those who created in the 70s to contemporary sculptors. Each work in the exhibition is representative in some sense. I would like to mention that in addition to the works of authors whose oeuvres are known to the public, the exhibition also includes works by sculptors who have unjustifiably remained in the shadow of oblivion, such as Moma Vukovića i Dragoljub Adzic.

What message would you like the audience to take away after visiting the exhibition?

I do not believe in ready-made messages, but I believe in the feelings, reflections and contemplations of each individual visitor during and after their encounter with the works of art. If just one artwork on display changes the visitor's feelings at least for a moment and encourages them to think, or is "stored" in their subconscious and memory as a dear memory, or the viewer simply feels a connection with the work that does not even need to be explained, the exhibition has meaning.

What was the cooperation with the Grad Teatar festival like and how significant is it that the exhibition is being realized as part of its program?

The cooperation was wonderful and easy. The professionalism and dedication of the employees of the City Theatre, as well as colleagues at the Public Institution Museums and Galleries of Podgorica, made the process of preparing the exhibition a valuable experience. Networking is important in all areas, so that we do not sink into the closed-mindedness of the locality, which the City Theatre recognized in the segment of the art program. The opportunity for the audience in Budva, as well as guests of Budva, to see works from the collections of Montenegrin museums in an unusual setting contributes to the expansion of the mission that culture and art belong to everyone. With these seemingly small, but certainly effective and efficient efforts of the organizers, the circle of people who have the opportunity to meet and enrich themselves through dialogue with universal artistic values is significantly increasing.