Mladen Stilinović
Encyclopedia
Mladen Stilinović born, 1947 in Belgrade
, Serbia
is a conceptual artist and one of the leading figures of the so-called "New Art Practice" in Croatia
. He lives and works in Zagreb
, Croatia.
Stilinović's works are based on the idea of social and art critique. They are often witty, and come with a dose of irony and cynicism illustrated for example in his work, Money is Money, Art is Art. He was one of the founding members of the informal neo-avantgarde, Grupa šestorice autora (Group of Six Authors), together with Vladimir Martek, Boris Demur, Željko Jerman
, Sven Stilinović and Fedomir Vučemilović. The group was active in Zagreb from 1975 to 1979. In addition to his artistic creative output, he also managed the Extended Media Gallery (1981–1991), and was one of the co-founders of the Podroom Gallery (1978–1980). From 1969 to 1976 he was dedicated to experimental film. He collaborated with the group IRWIN
on the project Retroavangarde (1994). He is especially famous for his Exploitation of the Dead series (1984–1990) which has been exhibited at many shows, such as documenta
in Kassel (2007).
He has had many exhibitions in Croatia and abroad, among the more recent being: The Cynicism of the Poor, Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb
, (2001–2002), In Search of Balkania, Neue Galerie am Landesmuseum Joanneum in Graz, 2002), Blood & Honey – Art in the Balkans (Vienna, 2003) and In the Gorges of the Balkans which was shown in the Kunsthalle Fridericianeum (Kassel, 2003), Platform Garanti Contemporary Art Center
(Istanbul, 2007) and Van Abbemuseum (Eindhoven, 2008). Igor Zabel, the renowned Slovenian curator, chose him as a guest artist at the 50th Venice Biennale
(2003) where Stilinović exhibited his work Dictionary – Pain (2000–2003) in which he used white colour to blank out many of the definitions of words in a dictionary replacing them with the word pain.
His works belong to many museum and gallery collections, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York and Centre Georges Pompidou
in Paris, museums of modern art collections in Stockholm, Vienna, Ljubljana, Zagreb and Banja Luka and in private collections such as the Filip Trade Collection
, Zagreb.
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
is a conceptual artist and one of the leading figures of the so-called "New Art Practice" in Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
. He lives and works in Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
, Croatia.
Stilinović's works are based on the idea of social and art critique. They are often witty, and come with a dose of irony and cynicism illustrated for example in his work, Money is Money, Art is Art. He was one of the founding members of the informal neo-avantgarde, Grupa šestorice autora (Group of Six Authors), together with Vladimir Martek, Boris Demur, Željko Jerman
Željko Jerman
Željko Jerman , was a Croatian photographer who experimented the possibilities of photography as a medium....
, Sven Stilinović and Fedomir Vučemilović. The group was active in Zagreb from 1975 to 1979. In addition to his artistic creative output, he also managed the Extended Media Gallery (1981–1991), and was one of the co-founders of the Podroom Gallery (1978–1980). From 1969 to 1976 he was dedicated to experimental film. He collaborated with the group IRWIN
IRWIN
IRWIN is a collective of Slovenian artists, primarily painters, and an original founding member of Neue Slowenische Kunst .- History :In 1983, the artists Dušan Mandič, Miran Mohar, Andrej Savski, Roman Uranjek, and Borut Vogelnik, coming from the punk and graffiti scene in Ljubljana, formed an...
on the project Retroavangarde (1994). He is especially famous for his Exploitation of the Dead series (1984–1990) which has been exhibited at many shows, such as documenta
Documenta
documenta is an exhibition of modern and contemporary art which takes place every five years in Kassel, Germany. It was founded by artist, teacher and curator Arnold Bode in 1955 as part of the Bundesgartenschau which took place in Kassel at that time...
in Kassel (2007).
He has had many exhibitions in Croatia and abroad, among the more recent being: The Cynicism of the Poor, Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb
Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb
The Museum of Contemporary Art is a contemporary art museum located on Dubrovnik Avenue in Zagreb, Croatia. It is the biggest and most modern museum in the country....
, (2001–2002), In Search of Balkania, Neue Galerie am Landesmuseum Joanneum in Graz, 2002), Blood & Honey – Art in the Balkans (Vienna, 2003) and In the Gorges of the Balkans which was shown in the Kunsthalle Fridericianeum (Kassel, 2003), Platform Garanti Contemporary Art Center
Platform Garanti Contemporary Art Center
The contemporary art institution Platform Garanti Contemporary Art Center opened in 2001 and was located on the pedestrian Istiklal Avenue in Istanbul, Turkey...
(Istanbul, 2007) and Van Abbemuseum (Eindhoven, 2008). Igor Zabel, the renowned Slovenian curator, chose him as a guest artist at the 50th Venice Biennale
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale is a major contemporary art exhibition that takes place once every two years in Venice, Italy. The Venice Film Festival is part of it. So too is the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which is held in even years...
(2003) where Stilinović exhibited his work Dictionary – Pain (2000–2003) in which he used white colour to blank out many of the definitions of words in a dictionary replacing them with the word pain.
His works belong to many museum and gallery collections, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York and Centre Georges Pompidou
Centre Georges Pompidou
Centre Georges Pompidou is a complex in the Beaubourg area of the 4th arrondissement of Paris, near Les Halles, rue Montorgueil and the Marais...
in Paris, museums of modern art collections in Stockholm, Vienna, Ljubljana, Zagreb and Banja Luka and in private collections such as the Filip Trade Collection
Filip Trade Collection
The Filip Trade Collection is a large private collection of contemporary Croatian art. The collection is a subsidiary of Filip Trade, a distribution company with its offices located in the capital city of Croatia, Zagreb...
, Zagreb.
Published works on Mladen Stilinović
- Stilinović, Mladen, I Want to Go Home – Artist Book 1927–2006 (Centre for Women's Studies, Zagreb, 2008).
- Beroš, Nada, Milovac, Tihomir, Stipančić, Branka & Zabel, Igor, Mladen Stilinović: Pain (exh. catalogue, Venice Biennale, MSU, Zagreb, 2003).
- Beroš, Nada, Milovac, Tihomir & Dragojević Danijel, Mladen Stilinović: Exploitation of the Dead (exh. catalogue; MSU, Zagreb, 2001).