For English version please scroll down.


O SERIJI

Črte, ki jih rišemo, in sledi, ki jih puščamo za seboj v svetu, so raznolike. Nekatere se nežno vpenjajo v brezmejnost in neprekinjeni krogotok življenja narave, druge povzročajo neozdravljive rane in nepovratno škodo. Mnogokrat se ene prekrivajo z drugimi in so med seboj prepletene bolj, kot je človeku doumljivo. O vsem tem se sprašujemo ob fotografski razstavi Črte, ki jih rišemo Matjaža Krivica, predvsem pa je v ospredje postavljeno vprašanje perspektive.
Krivic, mednarodno uveljavljeni in večkrat nagrajeni dokumentarni fotograf, se z motivi fotografij, ki jih predstavlja na razstavi, pomika v polje abstrakcije, a ostaja zvest naravovarstveni in okoljski tematiki. Ob prepletu živopisnih barv, geometrično pravilnih likov in organskih vzorcev na prvi pogled pogosto – ali pa sploh – ni jasno, kaj gledamo. Šele ko se podobi približamo, prepoznamo brezmejnost neba, ostrino kamnine, simetrično urejenost delovišča, zaobljene krivine obale in raznovrstne sledi življenja. Fotografije jemljejo navdih iz neskončnih pojavnih oblik narave, ki na mikro in makro ravni sledijo istim zakonitostim. Prav lahko ne bi opazovali rečne delte, pač pa razvejano ožilje, drevesno krošnjo ali šarenico očesa. Krivic zavzema pogled oddaljenega opazovalca, ki bi bil obenem lahko tudi gledalec s povečevalnim steklom, in nam daje na ogled svet, kot ga vidi on. Se vidimo v tem svetu, in če se vidimo, se prepoznamo?
Ujeti v majhnost človeškega mikrokozmosa se redko zavemo enormnega vpliva, ki ga imajo naša življenja na planet. Sledi, ki jih puščamo za seboj, posledice naših dejanj, odločitev in nakupov, ki jih spodbuja fantazma neskončnega trošenja, se pogosto ne odražajo zgolj v naši neposredni okolici, pač pa tudi – dobesedno – na drugem koncu sveta. V želji po lastni varnosti in udobju Zahod razpenja svoje lovke in mimogrede za to žrtvuje celotne ekosisteme, biotsko raznovrstnost in vzpostavljene družbene strukture globalnega juga, kar je večkrat kot ne skrito našim očem. Kje se bomo odločili potegniti črto? Slonokoščeni stolpi, v katere smo se zaprli, se sesuvajo pred našimi očmi, prestopili smo mejo in porušili občutljiva ravnovesja. Vedno pogosteje je tudi nedotakljivi Zahod na milost in nemilost prepuščen naravnim ujmam. Vse, kar nam je ostalo, sta divjina in človek, poškodovana in ranjena, ki iščeta svoje novo ravnotežje.
Matjaž Krivic z radikalno preprostostjo in prepoznavno estetiko, ki ju neguje in razvija že več kot petindvajset let svoje kariere, nenehno raziskuje stičišča med sodobno in dokumentarno fotografijo. Z aktualno razstavo odkriva prej nevidene poglede, ki pred gledalca postavljajo nove perspektive. Lepoto išče v prostranih ravnicah Bolivije in tamkajšnjih ekosistemih, ki jih drastično ogroža pridobivanje litija za t. i. zeleno energijo, ter v ledeniških razpokah enega izmed islandskih vulkanov, ki se neustavljivo večajo zaradi segrevanja ozračja kot posledice kopičenja toplogrednih plinov. Fotograf se zaveda kompleksnosti stanja sveta in ve, da preprostih rešitev ni, obenem pa svari pred apatijo in zaigrano nemočjo. Nagovarja nas k razmisleku o vlogi, ki jo igramo, in sledi, ki jo puščamo za seboj. Je to črta, ki razdvaja ali povezuje?
– Vida Jocif


ABOUT THE SERIES

The lines we draw and the traces we leave behind in the world are diverse. Some are gently embedded in the boundless and unbroken cycle of nature's life, others cause incurable wounds and irreversible damage. Many times, one overlaps with the other, making them more intertwined than is comprehensible to man. All of this is the subject of Matjaž Krivic's photographic exhibition, The Lines We Draw, but above all, the question of perspective is at the forefront.
Krivic, an internationally renowned and award-winning documentary photographer, moves into the field of abstraction with the motifs of the photographs he presents in the exhibition, but remains faithful to the themes of nature conservation and the environment. With the interplay of vivid colours, regular geometric figures and organic patterns, it is often unclear at first glance – or even at all – what we are looking at. It is only when the viewer gets closer to the image that they recognise the immensity of the sky, the sharpness of the rock, the symmetrical orderliness of the site, the soft curves of the shore and the varied traces of life. The photographs take their inspiration from the infinite manifestations of nature, which follow the same patterns at both micro and macro levels. You could be looking not at a river delta, but at a branching blood vessel, a canopy of trees or the iris of an eye. Krivic takes the vantage point of a distant observer, who could simultaneously be the viewer with a magnifying glass, and lets us see the world as he sees it. Do we see ourselves in it, and if we do, do we recognise ourselves?
Confined to the smallness of the human microcosm, we rarely realise how enormous the impact our lives have on the planet is. The traces we leave behind, the consequences of our actions, choices and purchases, fuelled by the phantasm of endless spending, are often reflected not only in our immediate surroundings, but also – literally – on the other side of the world. In the pursuit of its own security and comfort, the West is stretching out its tentacles and, incidentally, sacrificing entire ecosystems, biodiversity and the established social structures of the Global South, more often than not hidden from our eyes. Where do we choose to draw the line? The ivory towers in which we have enclosed ourselves are crumbling before our eyes; we have crossed a line and upset delicate balances. Increasingly, even the untouchable West is impacted by natural disasters. All we have left are wilderness and man, damaged and wounded, searching for their new balance.
With his radical simplicity and distinctive aesthetic, which he has nurtured and developed for more than twenty-five years of his career, Matjaž Krivic constantly explores the intersections between contemporary and documentary photography. With his current exhibition, he is discovering previously unseen viewpoints that bring new perspectives in front of the viewer. Krivic looks for beauty in the vast plains of Bolivia and its ecosystems, which are drastically threatened by the extraction of lithium for the so-called green energy, and in the glacial crevasses of one of Iceland's volcanoes, which are growing unstoppably due to the warming of the atmosphere as a consequence of the accumulation of greenhouse gasses. The photographer is aware of the complexity of the state of the world and knows that there are no simple solutions to it. At the same time, he warns against apathy and feigned helplessness, and invites us to reflect on the role we play and the trail we leave behind. Is it a line that divides or connects?
– Vida Jocif