Disappearing – Emerging
26th October 2019
Installation
Museum of Contemporary Art of Republic of Srpska
Photo: Nemanja Mićević
It is a work of memorial character, the basis of which a reminder of this tragic event is, but also which serves as a symbolic link between the two extremes – suffering and new beginning, the past and the future, disappearing and emerging. This artistic intervention on the museum building pays tribute to the victims of the earthquake on one hand, and on the other, it focuses on the institution that emerged immediately after this tragedy, thanks to the “Action of Solidarity of the Fine Arts of Yugoslavia and the World”, which collected approximately 750 works of art that formed the basis for the founding of the then Art Gallery and made up its initial holdings. The “Disappearing – Emerging” installation consists of fifteen pillars set up to “support” the building of the museum, referencing fifteen earthquake victims, symbolizing the original fragility of man confronted with the destructive forces of nature, as well as the paradox of the life-and-death cycle, which in this case resulted in the birth of a new temple of culture. The devastation caused by a natural disaster and the triumph of humanity manifested through the “Action of Solidarity” are an unusual and very striking combination of life and art, spiritual and material, and the creation of new energy arising from the timeless competition of man and nature.
The contrast of the wooden pillars of the installation and solid walls of the former Railway Station building, undamaged in the 1969 earthquake, contributes to the monumentality of this work of art, which can be seen as a synthesis of fragments of the past and aspirations to restore awareness of the present moment and individual responsibility to society and the community.
Installation “Disappearing – Emerging” was realized with the support of the City of Banja Luka and “Elektrokrajina”, which provided the necessary logistical support for the realization of this monumental installation.