As the title implies, Tamara Sekulić’s first exhibition in Split deals
with the topic of ecology while referring to lost trades, the problem of genetically modified foods and the failed agriculture of Slavonia, where the artist lives. The work consists of two parts – a video installation titled Watering and a series of seven photographs called Rebus. The artist conceived the idea spontaneously; while walking her dog, she noticed how there a mostly older people working in the nearby lands, while the younger generations are not interested in learning the agricultural trade. Although the demanding IT sector is currently on the rise, the artist notes and is surprised by the fact that young people today handle technology so well but lack the basic knowledge about farming. The work Watering deals with this issue. The installation consists of live and artificial plants set around the gallery space while the screen above them shows a video of a watering can pouring water in a loop. Of course, there is nothing going on and the real plants cannot survive, so they start to die over time, while the plastic ones remain. Tamara wanted to show the absurdity of technological growth in a sarcastic way; regardless of all the opportunities technology provides, it cannot reach desired results without human interference. For example, we can design the best app for watering plants, but unless we pick up a watering can and water them ourselves, they will not be able to survive.
The second part of the work is a series of seven photographs which make up a visual puzzle with a clear association. Depicted are syringes containing color, and fruits and vegetables which are pale in the first photograph, but gain clear shades of green, yellow and red in the last photograph. This is a reference to genetically modified foods in our environment. In order to remain attractive to the customer and retain a longer shelf life, our food is being injected with all sorts of chemicals we then ingest. Unfortunately, it is increasingly difficult to find organic food nowadays and we are used to this type of almost artificial food, yet we do not do anything about it. As Tamara states – the quicker and simpler, the unhealthier it is. With this exhibition the author’s goal is to point to the aforementioned issues because for her, this is one of the ways to fight for the protection of our environment and a healthy way of life.
Tamara Sekulić was born in 1991. She graduated from the School of Art and Design in Osijek and in 2017 graduated sculpting from the Visual Culture Department at the Arts Academy in Osijek. She is active in various fields of visual and applied arts. Additionally, she also works in art pedagogy. She is a participant in a number of art projects, sculpting colonies and workshops, some of which she created and led. She is a member of the Croatian Association of Artists in Osijek. She lives and works in Osijek.
