“The exhibition entitled Interference was produced within the framework of the newer Alkatraz Gallery project Mentorship+, which supports the establishment of connections between artists and enables their continuous work over longer periods of time. It is not about mentorship per se, but rather about intergenerational collaboration on a non-hierarchical basis, a kind of mutual mentorship, so to say, where both parties can assume roles of an advisor, mentor, (co-)curator and creator in any given moment. In the context of the project, two persons, holding different positions inside the artistic system, are thus given the opportunity for collaborative partnership, in which their approaches meet in dialogue through the intertwinement of visions, perspectives, experiences, and artistic procedures. The project encourages a creative transfer of ideas among individuals outside of established channels, and is conceptualised with the purpose of encouraging intergenerational networking and cooperation. The exhibition presents a visual, physically tangible result of an annual work and a consequence of the establishment of a new platform for mutual learning and collaboration. Although the project asks numerous questions, it is up to the artists themselves to answer the questions of authorship, to design contents of a common project, and to find a way to confront the challenges of collective collaboration, encouraged by the gallery.
This time, we invited Maja Smrekar and Nika Erjavec to participate. During the working process, they decided to be dialogic partners in the process of the realisation of Nika Erjavec’s solo exhibition. The artists, though, already know one another, as Maja Smrekar was Nika Erjavec’s supervisor at The Academy of Fine Arts and Design, University of Ljubljana. Their artistic works research and treat similar topics referring to the contemporarity, whereas in their artistic practices, the stress is on the in-depth exploration of theory, observation of social processes, agile adaptation to the circumstances, and processuality as a strategy. This is the reason why we found it meaningful to encourage them to further connect by participating in the project Mentorship+.” – galerijalkatraz.com
Intermedia artist Nika Erjavec (1994) graduated in applied arts in 2017 and is currently finishing her MA study in sculpture at Academy of Fine Art and Design in Ljubljana whit thesis titled Sensory perceptions in the intersection of art and science / (in)visible transformations of the environment (mentorship: Maja Smrekar, Alen Ožbolt and Uršula Berlot.) Her practice is a hybrid of experimental studio practice and wide interdisciplinary research. Since 2014 she participated in many intermedia projects, local and internationally curated exhibitions and festivals. She is also working as photographer, scenography and costume designer in national theatres and independent performative scene in Slovenia. She held different workshops addressing the themes of cultural accessibility and received several grants (MOL student grant, Urban Glass (New York)) and awards for her work (ALUO Prešern award, bronze medal from Photo association of Serbia).
You are kindly invited to the exhibition Interference by Nika Erjavec on 25 January from 11.00 am. The exhibition was created in collaboration with Maja Smrekar, as part of the Mentoring + project. The duration of the exhibition depends on government measures taken against the covid-19 epidemic.
On display: 25 January 2021 – 29 January 2021