RENATA POLJAK
SONGS FOR THE SEA
Bačva Gallery, Home of HDLU (Meštrović pavilion)
29.2.-17.3.2024

Opening of the exhibition Songs for the Sea by RENATA POLJAK will be on Thursday, February 29, 2024 at 7pm, at Bačva Gallery (Home of HDLU / Meštrović pavilion).

In her foreword, Monika Herceg emphasizes:

” (…) The sea is peace. By the sea, ancient and vital, the mother sea, we can understand that we are but a moment, less than a moment in the vast cosmic history. Water is the possibility of life. It originated precisely in the water, in the oceans that once covered our searing and inhospitable planet. So, the sea has been there from the very beginning, it was the beginning – accompanying the first synthesis of molecules into larger molecules, the emergence of the first single-celled organisms, the connection of cells. When life emerged from the sea onto the land, the history of the land began, and then, around 1.9 million years ago, Homo erectus, the upright man, appeared. The upright man, perhaps never a wise one, separated himself from the way the planet breathes. Unaware that the story of life is much greater than man himself, we recklessly pollute and destroy even the sea, the very beginning of life. At the same time, let us not forget that the entire history of mankind and civilization is essentially a history of creation myths, where we transpose deities from one story to another, attributing divine properties to natural elements and phenomena we do not understand.

Can we turn back the clock? Can we change the story? This is what Renata Poljak is asking herself, looking for an answer through art, and all possible arsenals of art (aware that every language of creation can be understood in coexistence with others), a way not to merely rewrite an ancient story, but to make it alive through art, thus giving the Sea itself a new life, a new autonomous beginning. (…) ”

Biography

Renata Poljak has presented her work in numerous national and international solo exhibitions, film festivals, and biennials, and is the recipient of numerous prestigious fellowships and awards. Her residencies include stays at the San Francisco Art Institute, MuseumsQuartier in Vienna, Art In General in New York, and Cité Internationale des Arts and Récollets in Paris. A selection of artist’s films and video works has been independently screened at the Centre Georges Pompidou and Palais de Tokyo in Paris. For years, her work has focused on exploring the phenomenon of human migration and its physical and emotional consequences, particularly in her four recent films: “Partenza” (2016), “Yet Another Departure” (2018), “Porvenir” (2020), and “Split” (2021). The last three premiered at the Oberhausen Film Festival. “Porvenir” won six awards at film festivals. Her works can be found in numerous museum and private collections.

PREFACE

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The exhibition will be open from February 29 to March 17, 2024

Organizer: HDLU
With the support of: Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia, City of Zagreb