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MIO VESOVIĆ
ROSEBUD II
14. srpnja 2015. — 2. rujna 2015.
Radnička Galerija
MIO
VESOVIĆ
ROSEBUD
II
MIO VESOVIĆ
ROSEBUD II
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Ime ruže
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Prije nekoliko mjeseci susrela sam fotografa Milisava Miju Vesovića, koji
Upravo je Polet bio platforma na kojoj je Vesović 1980. godine
mi je povjerio da još uvijek skriva ciklus fotografija iz 2009., citat njegovog
plasirao svoj prvi poznati ciklus muškog akta – fotografije popularnog
glasovitog djela Rosebud (Pupoljak), snimljenog prije tri desetljeća. Serija
golmana Milana Šarovića, zbog kojih je s uredništvom sudski optužen
od dvanaest crno-bijelih fotografija predočava nagog muškarca koji
za promicanje pornografije. Vesovićeva provokacija zbila se nekoliko
vlastito spolovilo šiba stabljikom ruže. Vesović fotografira čin bolnog
mjeseci prije smrti karizmatičnog vođe Josipa Broza Tita, poslije koje
nadraživanja koje dovodi do erekcije, ali ne i do klimaksa. Ista radnja je
će uslijediti ekonomska kriza, emancipacija republičkih političkih elita,
ponovljena u ciklusu Rosebud II.
jačanje nacionalizama i rat. Paradoksalno, državni aparat zabrinut je
za javno ćudoređe. Ciklus Rosebud nastavak je Vesovićevog kršenja
Zamolila sam umjetnika da mi posudi radove u svrhu studentskog
istraživanja, pa smo nekoliko puta kratko razgovarali o njima. Inače
dominantnih društvenih normi, odnosno relativiziranja odnosa
iznimno elokventan, Vesović me svaki put navodio na krivi trag, sakrivao
javnog i privatnog, pornografskog i erotskog, masovno medijskog i
svoje motive i na kapaljku mi pružao „činjenice“. Namjere čovjeka koji je
umjetničkog.
naše druženje prije nekoliko godina započeo govorom u rimama, i ovom
su prilikom ostale zagonetne.
kustos Davor Matičević, koji je iz njega precizno iščitao navedeno
U međuvremenu smo se dogovorili i za izložbu. Budući da
relativiziranje odnosa javnog i privatnog: “Kroz osamdesete godine
Djelo je u Studiju Galerije suvremene umjetnosti izložio
svaka ozbiljna izložba treba biti opisana „vjerodostojnim“ kustoskim
prestalo je biti jasno tko je istinski umjetnik egzaltiranih ideja, a tko
predgovorom, našla sam se u nezgodnoj situaciji. Što je dulje Vesović krio
primijenjeni fotograf šokantnih provokacija. Elitni stvaraoci, ali i oni iz
značenja svojega rada, ja sam konstruirala sve više fantazija.
popularnih ili masovnih medija, posegnuli su za otkrivanjem sve trajnijih
Umjetnik mi je, međutim, dao dozvolu da napišem što god hoću. Umjesto
i tajanstvenijih tema radi objave sve intimnijih i sve skrivenijih motiva. U
predgovora, objavljujem fragmente različitih postupaka interpretacije,
tom razdoblju pomiču se kriteriji, ali se i miješaju kategorije — efekt i šok
osobnih projekcija i zabluda. Nadam se da mi umjetnik i njegova publika
se ravnopravno uključuju u iskustvo neuobičajenog shvaćanja ljepote,
neće zamjeriti.
korištenja ružnoće, buđenja asocijacija i uspostavljanja specifičnih
metafora.”²
Dodala bih da su Vesovićevi radovi istodobno i snimke
U doba Pupoljkovog nastanka, Vesović je jedan od najznatiželjnijih mladih
delegiranog body art performansa. Njegov je izvođač osoba bez
umjetnika u gradu žive razmjene ideja. Tih je godina bio fotograf tjednika
konkretizacije, predočena parcijalno. Poput srodnih performerskih
Saveza socijalističke omladine Hrvatske Polet, novina koje su krajem
praksi neodade, fluxusa i happeninga, u Vesovićevom djelu dolazi do
1970-ih postale poklič mladenačkog bunta. Poletov grafički urednik Goran
integracije umjetnosti i života.³ Provokacija ciklusa Rosebud, međutim,
Trbuljak odredio je rafiniranu estetiku tjednika i dao značenje fotografiji
u jugoslavenskom socijalističkom kontekstu, ima drukčiju narav no
koja je veličinom reprodukcije dominirala nad tekstom. Sandra Križić
srodni izražaji umjetnika Zapada. Bojana Pejić je u Vesovićevom ekscesu
Roban o tome piše: „Interes za fotoreportažu ponovno se pojavljuje
prepoznala otpor prema dominantnom modelu muškosti. 4 Njemu je
i na svjetskoj razini, ali u Poletovoj varijanti (koju valja promatrati u
Vesović pretpostavio lik senzualnog antijunaka.
svjetlu društveno-političke situacije bivše Jugoslavije), urbana scena
Remake Rosebud II nastao je u beznadnim okolnostima
se predstavlja u autentičnoj, sirovoj formi, daleko od reprezentativnih
postsocijalističkog Balkana, koji Srećko Horvat i Igor Štiks slikovito
matrica takozvane visoke kulture… Fotografija je potvrdila McLuhanovu
nazivaju “tranzicijskom pustinjom”.5 Rosebud II Vesović dopunjava
tezu o mediju u službi poruke, koja predstavlja domaće okruženje
fotografijom rascvalog ružinog cvijeta ružičastog tona.
onakvim kakvo jest, odnosno onako kako ga vide i doživljavaju njegovi
Kao komentar na Rosebud II, Vesović mi je poslao tjednik Vijenac s
sudionici. Dok je živio u velikom formatu, Poletova fotografija je izravno i
tekstom o aktualnom papi Franji, kojega autor Vladimir Lončarević
kritički promatrala i komentirala društvene, političke i kulturne odnose.“¹
naziva “Jedan od nas”.6
1
Križić Roban, Sandra (2010.), At second glance: the positions of Croatian photography,
²
Matičević, Davor (2005.), Rosebud (Pupoljak), Zagreb: Galerije Grada Zagreba, str. 2.
Zagreb: UPI-2M, str. 246.
³
Komparativnih primjera je mnogo i moguće ih je pronaći među predstavnicima različitih
medija: Bečki akcionisti, Bob Flanagan, Vito Acconci, Valie Export, Hannah Wilke, Carolee Schneemann, Lynda Benglis, Lucas Samaras, Ana Mendieta, Marina Abramović,
Andy Warhol, Robert Mapplethorpe, Nobuyoshi Araki, Daido Moriyama, Pierre Molinier.
4
Pejić, Bojana (2009.), Negotiating Private Spaces, u: katalog izložbe Gender Check.
Femininity and Masculinity in the Art of Eastern Europe, Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung
Ludwig Wien (November 13. studeni 2009. – 13. srpanj 2009.) i Zachęta – Narodowa
Galeria Sztuki (19. ožujak 2010. – 13. lipanj 2010.), uredila: Bojana Pejić, Köln: Verlag der
Buchhandlung Walther König, str. 144.
5
Štiks, Igor i Horvat, Srećko (2012.), Welcome to the Desert of Transition!: Post-socialism,
the European Union and a New Left, Balkans Monthly review, sv. 63, br. 10, str. 38.–48.
6
Lončarević, Vladimir, Jedan od nas!, Vijenac, br. 551, 16. travnja 2015., str. 3.
ROSEBUD II
MIO VESOVIĆ
1. čitanje: Rosebud kao društvena činjenica
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Vesović je zlatnim flomasterom intervenirao na tekstu: “Bravo Leila, Papa
njegove smrti, kada čistači njegova dvorca bacaju njegove uspomene
je partizan! Izložba je posvećena Franji Asiškom.” Ističući Papinu misao
i sakupljeno blago u vatru. Posljednji kadar filma otkriva zagonetku
kako je mučeništvo današnjih kršćana veće od mučeništva prvih kršćana,
posljednje riječi koju je Kane izgovorio. Rosebud je natpis na saonicama,
te citat ‘sanguis martyrum semen christianorum’ (lat. krv mučenika sjeme
uspomene na zadnji trenutak proveden s majkom. Građanin Kane stoga
je kršćana), Vesović nastavlja: “Ruža je posvećena. Rosebud.” Remake
se može tumačiti kao utjelovljenje mitskog junaka Edipa, kojemu sva
identičnog sadržaja ovim činom dobiva posve novu konotaciju. Ritualnim
moć, bogatstvo i ženska pažnja nisu bili dovoljni da nadoknadi odsutnost
trapljenjem tijela, Vesović postaje suvremeni martir koji izražava otpor
majčine ljubavi. Edipova tragična situacija ishodište je središnjeg motiva
protiv autoriteta političkih i ekonomskih elita.
psihoanalitičke teorije.7
“U psihoanalitičkoj teoriji, sam termin Edipov kompleks označava
2. čitanje: Rosebud kao edipska fiksacija
osjećaje i ideje koncentrirane oko dječje želje da posjeduje majku, svu
„Umjetnost je životna interpretacija sna.“
njenu pažnju, interese i osjećaje. Ove osjećaje i ideje um drži u onom
Otto Rank
dijelu psihičkog funkcioniranja koje obično nazivamo nesvjesno. Freud,
koji je i skovao termin Edipov kompleks, vjerovao je da je želja djeteta
Smatram da naziv Vesovićevog djela i njegovi karakteristični ikonografski
usmjerena prema majci kod oba spola”, piše psihoanalitičar dr. Goran
elementi nude ključ za psihoanalitičko tumačenje. Vesović, filmski
Babić.8
snimatelj i filmofil, svoje fotografije naziva prema ključnom motivu filma
Freud je smatrao da Edipov kompleks leži u jezgri neuroze i čini
Orsona Wellesa, Građanin Kane. Taj pokretač filmske radnje je „rosebud“,
njen konstitutivni dio i sadržaj. Tako govori o ‘neurotskom protestu protiv
zagonetna riječ koju glavni lik, novinski magnat Charles Foster Kane,
kastracije’, žrtve koja mora biti nužno učinjena u ime načela realiteta.
izgovara prije smrti. Wellesov junak je filmsko utjelovljenje američkog
Neurotičar ustrajava u tome da bude falus.
moćnika Williama Randolpha Hearsta, u čijem je društvu nerijetko
Akter Pupoljka zarobljen je u svojoj žudnji i onemogućen da
boravio Herman Mankiewicz, scenarist Građanina Kanea. Mankiewitz
dosegne klimaks. Objekt kojim se nadražuje – trnovita stabljika ruže –
je bio dobro upoznat s detaljima života Hearsta i njegove ljubavnice,
istodobno je uzrok boli i užitka.
glumice Marion Davis. Tako mu je bio i poznat i nadimak koji joj je Hearst
nadjenuo – rosebud, što je u kolokvijalnom jeziku sinonim za klitoris,
Trbuljak. Njegov koncept „od malog prema velikom, pa opet do malog“
središte ženskog užitka. Film prati Kaneovu sudbinu od trenutka kada ga
naglašava zatočeništvo u zatvorenom krugu stalne napetosti, bez
kao dječaka mati prodaje i izbacuje iz roditeljskog doma do dana nakon
mogućnosti olakšanja i razrješenja.
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Edipov kompleks dobio je ime po starogrčkom mitu o Edipu, jednom od najtragičnijih
tijela. Sfinga je proždirala svakog tko nije znao rješenje njene zagonetke, pa je onome koji
dugo nisu mogli začeti dijete. Stoga je Laj potražio savjet Pitije, proročice Apolonovog
ju odgonetne bilo obećano tebansko prijestolje. Očajni Edip pristupio je Sfingi koja ga
proročišta u Delfima, koja mu je prenijela stravično pretkazanje: „Ubit će te vlastiti sin.“
je upitala: “Tko to ujutro ide na četiri, danju na dvije, a uvečer na tri noge?” Bez mnogo
Usprkos Pitijinom proročanstvu, Jokasta je rodila dječaka. Tri dana starome sinu, Laj je
razmišljanja, Edip odgovori: „Čovjek. U ranom djetinjstvu on puzi, kad odraste, ide na dvije
probio stopala klinom, vezao mu noge i predao slugi s nalogom da ga ubije. Dijete je
noge, a u starosti se služi štapom.“
ostavljeno na planini Kiteron, gdje ga je pronašao pastir koji je čuvao stado korintskog
kralja Poliba. Kraljevski supružnici Polib i Meropa nisu imali potomaka, pa su nađeno siroče
grčkog oidáō - nateknem, nabujam, nabreknem + pús - noga, dakle „čovjek natečenih
Čuvši točnu odgonetku, Sfinga se bacila u more, a Edip je proglašen nasljednikom kralja
Laja. Kao vladar Tebe, dobio je svoju majku, Jokastu za ženu. Time je ispunjeno i drugo
usvojili. Po oteklim nogama nadjenuli su mu ime Edip (značenje imena Edip izvodi se od
U to doba Tebanci su strepjeli pred Sfingom, krilatim čudovištem ženske glave i lavljega
junaka antičke književnosti. Edipovi roditelji, tebanski kralj Laj i njegova žena Jokasta,
proročanstvo.
Jokasta mu je rodila četvoro djece, prvo blizance Eteokla i Polinika, a potom kćeri
nogu“).
Antigonu i Izmenu. Nakon godina spokojnoga života, Tebu je poharala kuga koju je poslao
Edip je odrastao na korintskom dvoru bez ikakvog saznanja o svom porijeklu sve do
bog Apolon. Edip je stoga poslao Jokastinog brata Kreonta u delfsko proročište po savjet.
dana kada ga je neki pijani mladić nazvao kopiletom. Kako bi saznao istinu o sebi, Edip
Pitija je ovaj put objavila da će Teba biti oslobođena epidemije pronađe li se Lajev ubojica.
se uputio u delfsko proročište. Pitija, ista proročica zbog koje je prognan iz roditeljskog
Edip se obratio proroku Tiresiji, koji mu je otkrio istinu: Edip je sam ubio oca Laja i oženio
doma, nije mu ništa rekla o prošlosti. Predvidjela mu je, međutim, tragičnu budućnost:
majku Jokastu. Doznavši to, Jokasta se objesila, a Edip si iskopao oči da ne gleda vlastitu
„Ubit ćeš vlastitog oca i oženiti se majkom.“
stvarnost. Vlastiti sinovi Eteoklo i Polinik prognali su ga iz Tebe. Edip nekoliko godina luta
Ne znajući da mu Meropa i Polib nisu pravi roditelji, Edip je napustio Korint i uputio se u
u pratnji najstarije kćeri Antigone. Kreont, Jokastin brat, postaje kralj Tebe i protjeruje
Tebu. Na putu je susreo kralja Laja, koji mu je zabranio prolaz, misleći da je Edip razbojnik.
Edipa iz grada. Oslijepljeni Edip u pratnji svoje starije kćerke Antigone, nigdje prihvaćen,
Razbješnjeni Edip ubija Laja i nehotično ostvaruje prvi dio proročanstva.
luta nekoliko godina po svijetu. Umro je u Kolonu, svetom gaju pored Atene.
MIO VESOVIĆ
ROSEBUD II
Ta je situacija naglašena postavom izložbe koji je predložio Goran
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Rosebud II Vesović povezuje s Kristovom žrtvom. Prema psihoanalitičaru
Kršćanstvo, međutim, dolazi do kompromisnog evolucijskog rješenja
Ottu Ranku, nadilaženje Edipovog kompleksa u vezi je s ovladavanjem
za ‘eliminaciju’ oca. Doktrina prvog grijeha potječe iz orfizma. Prema
arhaičnog, animalnog ljudskog nasljeđa. U svome eseju Totem i tabu
toj religiji, koja je utjecala na razvoj kršćanstva, ljudska vrsta potječe od
Freud analizira prvobitnu hordu koju vidi kao surovu tiraniju oca nad
Titana koji su ubili boga Dioniza-Zagreusa i time ponijeli teret grijeha.
sinovima, kojima, između ostalog, diktira i spolno ponašanje.9 Očeva
Prema kršćanskom mitu, prvi grijeh je pobuna protiv Boga Oca. S
represija dovodi do pobune sinova i oceubojstva, što je motiv mnogih
obzirom na to da Krist vlastitim životom otkupljuje grijeh koji su njegova
religija.
braća učinila prema Ocu, prema ljudskom principu odmazde dolazimo
U nastavku teksta dr. Babić navodi: “Edipov kompleks se prema Freudovom shvaćanju
regulirati iskustvo dječje ekscitacije u nešto što će nakon majčine prorade postati ugoda,
događa oko treće godine života i postupno slabi prema šestoj godini kad dijete
sigurnost ili podnošljiva razina ekscitacije.
adolescencije, smatra se danas, dolazi ponovno do aktualizacije edipskog kompleksa, a
njegovo razrješenje predstavlja zdravu i prijeko potrebnu osnovu za konačno formiranje
Ovaj proces označavanja unutarnjih tjelesnih iskustava djeteta u majčinom umu uspostavlja
simboličku organizaciju dječjeg uma. (...)
Edipov kompleks označava pomak prema simboličnom kroz intervenciju oca. Otac, stvarni
osobnosti uključujući i pitanje identiteta. (...) Ono što danas psihoanaliza podrazumijeva
i simbolični, zatvara krug uzajamnih želja majke i djeteta i otvara prostor za razvoj zasebnog
pod Edipovim kompleksom je daleko kompleksnije, iako u suštini zadržava ideju o
sebstva, bića odvojenog od majke.
podvojenim osjećajima, ljubavi i mržnje koje dijete osjeća prema roditeljima. Dijete staro
Otac je u ovoj funkciji stvarna osoba, no još više simbol majčine želje. Otac je nešto u
oko tri godine već je upoznalo svoje socijalno okruženje. Napretkom razvoja govora
majčinom umu i prema čemu je usmjerena njena čežnja, a to nisam ja. U simboličnom ocu je
počinje prepoznavati odnose u obitelji, osobito odnos između majke i oca, ali i drugih
postavljen centar autoriteta i simbolični zakon koji zabranjuje želju djeteta. Ključni simbol koji
članova obitelji. U to doba se već usvajaju i pravila ponašanja u bliskim obiteljskim
pokreće ovaj cijeli proces je falus.
odnosima ali i onim izvan obitelji i kroz te setove pravila razvija se moralnost pojedinca.
Falus nije isto što i penis, falus kao simbol ima drugačije funkcije u psihološkom prostoru od
(...) S početkom puberteta i buđenjem adolescentne seksualnosti nesvjesni konflikti
penisa kao biološkog organa. Falus je slično kao i otac - istovremeno simbol, metafora i nešto
povezani s Edipovim kompleksom ponovno se razbuktavaju i doprinose buri osjećaja
realno. Otac je simbol i metafora raskidanja ekskluzivnog odnosa majka-dijete i uvodi dijete u
i proturječnostima u ponašanju adolescenata. Među najkontroverznijim idejama
vezanim uz Edipov kompleks je i Freudovo viđenje kompleksa kao nečeg univerzalnog,
simbolički prostor u kojem se rađa želja, osjećaj čežnje i nedostatka.(...)
Psihoanalitičari su stanje majčine žudnje usmjerene prema nečem trećem izvan djeteta,
transhistorijskog i transkulturalnog. U klasičnoj freudijanskoj psihoanalitičkoj teoriji
djelomično smještenom u ocu, a djelomično čak i dalje izvan oca i nikad posve dostižnom
dječja identifikacija s roditeljem istog spola predstavlja uspješno razrješenje Edipovog
označili konceptom falusa. Dijete pretpostavlja da mora imati zamišljeni falus kako bi ostalo
kompleksa i ključno iskustvo u razvoju zrele seksualne uloge i identiteta. (...) Početak
objektom majčine želje. Kako je njena želja djelomično usmjerena k ocu, fantazija falusa se
prepoznavanja roditelja kao para povezanog seksualnošću uključuje napuštanje
povezuje s ocem u vjerovanju da je on taj koji ga posjeduje.
ideje isključivog i stalnog posjedovanja majke i uvodi dubok osjećaj gubitka. Ako
Edipov kompleks uključuje proces napuštanja identifikacije s imaginarnim falusom i
se taj gubitak ne može donekle tolerirati i tako djelomično prežaliti, može se stvoriti
prepoznavanje imaginarnog falusa kao simboličnog i zapravo nikad posjedovanog. Ono što
osjećaj ugroženosti u socijalnom miljeu koji dominantno funkcionira prema načelima
je Freud nazvao kastracija može se zamisliti kao proces koji uključuje prepoznavanje sebe kao
utemeljenima u djelomično razriješenom edipskom konfliktu. U ovoj ideji leži osnova
nedostatnog ili nekog tko nema falus.
onoga što psihoanaliza smatra važnim i na izvjestan način predestinirajućom nesvjesnom
Očigledno je da ovdje nije u pitanju organ penis, već fantazija o važnosti, privlačnosti i
tendencijom, istom onom kojoj ni Edip u starogrčkom mitu nije mogao izmaći. (...)
neodoljivosti ideje biti falus koji se zapravo nikad nije bilo ni posjedovalo, što dječak bolno
Roditeljski odnos je genitalan i prokreativan dok odnos roditelja i djece nije. Ovakvo
otkrije kroz proces kastracije. Kastracija uključuje proces u kojem dječak prihvaća da simbolički
viđenje prirode i razlika u odnosima također pobuđuje osjećaj gubitka, ali i zavisti. Ako
može imati falus samo ako prihvati da ga zapravo nikad neće imati u realitetu, a djevojčice
se gubitak i zavist ne mogu tolerirati, mogu postati izvorom osjećaja nezadovoljstva,
prihvaćaju neimanje falusa kroz napuštanje identifikacije s moćnom faličkom majkom.
sklonosti pritužbama, jadikovci i samoobezvređivanju.” (...) U namjeri promišljanja
U svim diskusijama o seksualnosti Freud je naglašavao koncept kastracije. Ono što je Freud
Edipovog kompleksa potrebno je odmaknuti se od realnih ljudi u odnosu i otvoriti um za
naučio iz svog kliničkog iskustva je da seksualnost uvijek uključuje nemogućnost potpunog
simboličku strukturu koja organizira odnos između muškarca i žene. U našem društvu je
zadovoljenja. U namjeri da se ostvari neka satisfakcija nužno je napustiti težnju ka totalnom
Edipov kompleks primarna struktura koja definira naše simboličke i nesvjesne odnose.
zadovoljenju i u tom gubitku totalne satisfakcije jedan je od elemenata Freudovog koncepta
Preciznije rečeno, Edipov kompleks predstavlja trojnu simboličku strukturu (otac, majka
i dijete) koja prekida dvojni imaginarni odnos između majke i djeteta. Naime, ekskluzivni
kastracije. (...)
Tek kroz napuštanje incestuoznog objekta želje moguće je negdje drugdje pronaći
dvojni odnos nikad nije ni postojao, osim u imaginaciji djeteta, što je normalno u
neincestuozni objekt želje. Zabrana primarnog objekta želje-majke ili nekog drugog na
najranijim fazama psihičkog razvoja. Zadržavanje te zablude o imaginatornom jedinstvu s
njenom mjestu stvara nedostatak koji subjekta orijentira prema potrazi u nekom drugom
majkom vodi u psihopatologiju u odrasloj dobi. Najranije dječje iskustvo karakterizirano je
smjeru i na taj način je inaugurirana želja. Kastracijska prijetnja i s njom uspostavljen Edipski
apsolutnom ovisnošću o majci koja ispunjava dječje potrebe za hranom, brigom i njegom.
zakon koji artikulira zabranu i kaznu, daju djetetu orijentaciju bez koje ostaje permanentno
Istovremeno dijete je suočeno s posve enigmatičnom majkom. Kroz svoj “odraz u majčinim
zarobljeno u strahu od gubitka.”
očima” dijete naslućuje sebe. Bezimene ekscitacije koje dolaze kroz perceptivni aparat i
i mimici. Dijete dobiva iskustvo da je ono sadržaj majčina uma ukoliko je njen doživljaj
dječjih unutarnjih stanja usklađen s djetetom i ukoliko majka svojim odgovorom uspijeva
~Babić, Goran, Edipov kompleks u: Eduard Klain i suradnici, O psihoanalizi sasvim
otvoreno (2015.), Zagreb: Školska knjiga
unutrašnjost tijela viđene majčinim očima postaju organizirane i osmišljene u gesti, riječi
9
Freud, Sigmund (2000.), Totem i tabu. Neke podudarnosti u duševnom životu divljaka i
neurotičara, Zagreb: Stari grad d.o.o.
ROSEBUD II
napušta seksualnu želju za roditeljem suprotnog spola i identificira se s rivalom. Tijekom
MIO VESOVIĆ
8
10
11
do zaključka da je prvi grijeh – ubojstvo. Prema istom načelu reparacije,
strast, inteligencija i navika, kad gomilaju na naše prave dojmove,
naknada za Kristovu smrt bilo bi ubojstvo njegova oca, Boga. Kristovo
kako bi nam ih sasvim sakrili, stručne nazive, praktične ciljeve, koje
okajanje sadržano je u odbacivanju žena zbog kojih je prvobitna pobuna
pogrešno nazivamo životom. Ukratko, ta tako savršena umjetnost
protiv oca započela. Takvim odricanjem, Sin Božji, Krist, nadilazi grijeh
jedina je živa umjetnost. Jedino ona izražava drugima, a nama samima
svoje braće i zauzima očevo mjesto. Religija sina tako je nadjačala religiju
pokazuje naš život, taj život koji se ne može „promatrati”, čije prividnosti
oca. Krist za samog sebe kaže: „Uzmite i jedite od ovoga svi, ovo je moje
koje zamjećujemo moramo prevoditi, a često i čitati naopako i teško
tijelo koje će se za vas predati“, čime osigurava slobodu za svoju braću.
odgonetati. Taj rad koji je obavilo naše samoljublje, naša strast, naša
Izlišno je pitati se jesu li navedene ideje bile Vesovićeva motivacija.
“Mentalizacija osiromašuje vitalnost djela. Što je umjetnik bliži svome
sposobnost oponašanja, naša apstraktna inteligencija, naši običaji, taj
će rad uništiti umjetnost, koja će nas nagnati da krenemo u suprotnom
nesvjesnom, to je njegovo djelo vitalnije”, kazuje dr. Babić. Vesović je
pravcu, da se vratimo u dubine, gdje leži, nama nepoznato, ono što je
upravo takav, autentičan autor, u neposrednoj komunikaciji s vlastitim
zaista postojalo”, 11 te nastavlja: „Naravno, tu je riječ o Ivanovoj (Posavec)
nesvjesnim iz kojeg crpi nadahnuće.
i mojoj fotografiji MO = mekano okidanje. Naš rad uništava umjetnost,
„Najljepša stvar u životu umjetnika je ona koju nije u stanju riješiti.
tjera nas u suprotnom pravcu, da se vratimo tamo gdje je zaista nešto
(…) Umjetnik poznaje pravila umjetnosti, ali umjetničko djelo se ne može
postojalo.“12
stvoriti slijedeći pravila. Zna li histerik pravila nastanka svoje bolesti?
Možda i ne zna u potpunosti, jer tada bi bio liječnik.“10
tumačenja umjetničkog djela. Usprkos značenjima koje mu pridajemo,
Vesović je prije trideset godina Rosebud proglasio prilogom
„traganju za izgubljenim vremenom“. Prilikom nedavnih razgovora,
Od početka modernog doba čovjek je iznalazio različite načine
umjetničko djelo je vrijednost per se. “Što nazivljemo ružom, slatko bi
mirisalo i s drugim imenom.”13 Potreba da ga objasnimo i demistificiramo
ponovio je isto. Mogli bismo nagađati o vezi navedene asocijacije s
ne bismo li ga konačno zaposjeli, spriječit će transcendentalno iskustvo
Proustovim junakom, koji svoju ispovijest započinje sjećanjem na iskustvo
doživljaja.
separacije od majke.
Neka djela, međutim, nose uznemirujuću zagonetku koju žudimo
odgonetnuti. Rosebud je upravo takvo djelo.
What is in the name?
Njegovo analiziranje za mene je bilo poput čitanja romana Umberta
Međutim, Vesović citira Prousta u sasvim drugom kontekstu: „Umjetnikov
Eca. Rješenje se ne nazire do samoga kraja, a potpuna istina ionako je
rad, nastojanje da pod materijom, pod iskustvom, pod riječima, zamijeti
nedostižna. Kako majstor semiotike reče: „Pripovjedač ne treba nuditi
interpretaciju vlastita djela; inače ne bi napisao roman, koji je sam po
sebi stroj za kreiranje interpretacija.”14 Hvala Vesoviću na takvoj prilici.
10
11
MIO VESOVIĆ
ROSEBUD II
nešto različno, baš je suprotan od onoga rada koji svakoga časa, kad
živimo daleko od sebe samih, također obavljaju u nama samoljublje,
Freud, Sigmund, Lieberman, E. James, Kramer, Robert, Richter, C. Gregory (2012.), The
Letters of Sigmund Freud and Otto Rank: Inside Psychoanalysis, Baltimore: The John
Hopkins University Press, str. 2.
Proust, Marcel (1977.), U traganju za izgubljenim vremenom, Zagreb: Zora - Grafički zavod
Hrvatske, svezak 13, str. 14.
12
Matičević, Davor (2005.), Rosebud (Pupoljak), Zagreb: Galerije Grada Zagreba, str. 1.
13
Shakespeare, William (2003), Romeo i Julija: uzvišena i tugaljiva tragedija Romea i Julije, II.
čin, II. prizor, Zagreb: Školska knjiga
14
Eco, Umberto (1994), The Name of the Rose, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, str. 541.
THE NAME OF THE ROSE
12
13
Several months ago I met photographer Milislav Mio Vesović, who told me
Polet itself was the platform which Vesović used in 1980 to launch his
in confidence that he was still hiding a cycle he made in 2009, a quote of his
first famous male act cycle – the photographs of the popular goalkeeper
famous Rosebud, made three decades ago. A series of twelve black and white
Milan Šarović, for which he and his editorial staff were sued for promoting
photographs entitled Rosebud from 1985 shows a nude man flogging his penis
pornography.
with a thorny stem. Vesović photographs the act of painful arousal ending in a
full erection but without a climax. Its colour remake Rosebud II illustrates the
of the charismatic leader Josip Broz Tito, followed by economic crisis,
same act. I asked Vesović to lend both cycles to me for research purposes as
emancipation of republican elites, booming nationalism and war.
Vesović’s provocation happened a few months before the death
I was writing an essay on the aim of art criticism. Several times we discussed
Paradoxically, the state was concerned for public moral.
the works. Vesović, an extremely eloquent interlocutor, kept leading me astray
In the Rosebud cycle, Vesović continues to breech dominant social
again and again, hiding the ‘facts’, and presenting only with bits and fragments
norms, i.e. undermining the public v.s. private, pornographic v.s. erotic,
of the work’s origin. The intentions of the man who began our socialising a few
mass media and artistic.
years ago with poetic rhyme again remained mysterious to me.
custodian Davor Matičević, who managed to interpret precisely the
In the meantime, we have agreed to arrange an exhibit. Since every
The work was displayed in the studio of Modern Art Gallery by
serious exhibit needs to be described in an “authentic” curator preface, I have
stated relativisation of the relation between the public and the private:
found myself in an inconvenient situation. The longer Vesović hid the meaning
“In the 1980’s it was no longer easy to tell who was a true artist with
of his work, the more fantasies I formed.
exalted ideas and who was a mere photographer turning out shocking
However, Vesović gave me free reign to write whatever I wanted. So
in place of a preface, I am giving you fragments of various interpretations –
personal projections and misconceptions. I hope the author will not mind.
provocations.
Elite artists, but also those working in the popular and mass media,
turned to discovering intimate and often obscure motives. At that time
criteria were redefined and categories were mixed – both effect and
1. interpretation: Rosebud as a social fact
shock were used to express unusual approach to beauty. Artist did not
At the time when the Rosebud cycle came into existence, Vesović has been
shy away from ugliness; they went for associative power and built specific
one of the most curious members of the young artistic scene in a city of live
metaphors.”²
body art performance. His performer is a not an actual concrete person.
I would say that Vesović’s works are also recordings of delegated
functioned as an escapist outcry of youth rebellion. Polet’s art director Goran
The body is shown only in parts. Like similar performance practices of
Trbuljak (conceptual artist and film cameraman) defined a refined aesthetic for
neo-Dada, Fluxus and happening, Vesović in his work integrates art and
the weekly and placed a lot of importance on photography, which dominated
life.³ However, the Rosebud provocation in the Yugoslavian socialist
over text in terms of size.
context has a nature different from those of the western artists. Bojana
Pejić in Vesović’s exuberance sees a resistance against the dominant
On that topic, Sandra Križić Roban writes: „The interest for reporter
photography reappears at the world level as well, but in Polet variety (that
model of male heroism.4
should be considered in the atmosphere of political and social situation
of former Yugoslavia), the urban scene is presented in its genuine and
The Rosebud II remake was made in the desperate circumstances of the
Vesović juxtaposes it with the character of a sensual anti-hero.
raw form, far from the ‘representative’ matrices of the so-called ‘high
post-socialist Balkans, vividly called the desert of transition by Srećko
culture’… Photography confirmed McLuhan thesis about the medium as
Horvat and Igor Štiks.5 Vesović rounds off the Rosebud II cycle with a
message, presenting the domestic environment as it was, i.e. as it was seen
photograph of a blooming rose flower of a pink hue.
As a comment on Rosebud II, Vesović sent me the Croatian weekly
and experienced by its participants. For its time in large format, Polet’s
photography directly and critically observed and commented on social,
Vijenac with a text on Pope Francis, called by the text author Vladimir
political, and cultural relation.“¹
Lončarević Lončarević ‘one of us’.6
1
Križić Roban, Sandra (2010), At second glance: the positions of Croatian photography,
²
Matičević, Davor (2005.), Rosebud (Pupoljak), Zagreb: Galerije Grada Zagreba, pg. 2.
Zagreb: UPI-2M, pg. 246.
³
Comparative examples are many and can be found among artists who worked in different media,
like Vienna actionists, Bob Flanagan, Vito Acconci, Valie Export, Hannah Wilke, CaroleeSchneemann,
Lynda Benglis, Lucas Samaras, Ana Mendieta, Marina Abramović, and in photographic works of Andy
Warhol, Robert Mapplethorpe, Nobuyoshi Araki, Daido Moriyama and Pierre Molinier.
4
Pejić, Bojana (2009), Negotiating Private Spaces, exhibition catalogue, Gender Check. Femininity
and Masculinity in the Art of Eastern Europe, Museum ModernerKunstStiftung Ludwig Wien
(November 13, 2009 – February 14, 2010) and Zachęta National Gallery of Art (March 19, 2010 –
June 13, 2010), ed. BojanaPejić, Cologne: Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther König, pg. 144.
5
Štiks, Igor and Horvat, Srećko (2012), Welcome to the Desert of Transition!: Post-socialism, the
European Union and a New Left, Balkans Monthly Review, vol 63, no. 10, pp. 38-48.
6
Lončarević, Vladimir, Jedan od nas!, Vijenac, no. 551, April 16 2015, pg. 3.
ROSEBUD II
MIO VESOVIĆ
idea exchange. Those years, Vesović was a photographer for Polet, the weekly
paper of the Socialist Youth of Croatia, a publication that from the late 1970’s
14
15
Vesović’s intervention in the text with a gold felt tip pen says: “Way to go,
memories and collected treasure into the fire. The last shot in the film
Leila! The Pope is a partisan! The exhibition is dedicated to St. Francis of
reveals the mystery of the last word Kane uttered. Rosebud is the name
Assisi.” Underlining the Pope’s statement that the martyrdom of today’s
written on a sleigh, a memory of the last moment he ever spent with his
Christians is greater than the martyrdom of the early Christians, and
mother.
the quote ‘sanguis martyrum semen christianorum’ (Latin, ‘the blood
Citizen Kane can therefore be interpreted as the embodiment of the
of martyrs is the seed of Christianity’), Vesović continues: “The rose is
mythical hero Oedipus, for whom all the power, wealth and female
consecrated. Rosebud.”
attention cannot supplement the absence of motherly love. Oedipus’s
tragic situation is the root of the central motive of psychoanalytical
An identical remake hence gets an entirely new connotation. A ritual of
bodily mutilation makes Vesović a contemporary martyr who thus expresses
theory, the Oedipus complex.7
his resistance against the authority of political and economic elites.
“In the theory of psychoanalysis, the term Oedipus complex
designates a child’s feelings and thoughts concentrated around
1. interpretation: Rosebud as an Oedipal fixation
possessing his mother, and commanding all her attention, interest and
„Art is life’s dream interpretation.“
emotions. These feelings and thoughts reside in the part of psychic
Otto Rank
functioning commonly known as the unconscious. Freud, who coined
I believe that the name of Vesović’s work, Rosebud, and his idiosyncratic
present in both sexes, male and female.” writes psychoanalyst dr. Goran
iconographic elements provide a key to a psychoanalytical reading.
Babić.8
Vesović, cameraman and film enthusiast, names his photographs after
the term, believed that the child’s wish to possess his mother is equally
Freud believed that the Oedipus complex was at the core of
the key motive of Orson Welles’s film Citizen Kane.
neurosis and makes up its constituting part and content. Thus he speaks
The driver of the plot is “Rosebud”, the mysterious word the newspaper
of “neurotic protest against castration”, a sacrifice that must necessarily
magnate Charles Foster Kane utters before his death. Welles’s hero
be made in the name of the principles of reality. A neurotic persists in
is the cinematic embodiment of the American powerhouse William
becoming the phallus.
Randolph Hearst, who was often accompanied by Herman Mankiewicz,
who wrote Citizen Kane. Mankiewicz was well acquainted with the details
without climaxing. The tool of his gratification – a thorny rose stem, is at
of Hearst’s life and his lover, actress Marion Davis. That is how he knew
the same time a source of pain and pleasure. This situation is emphasised
is the exhibit arrangement proposed by Goran Trbuljak. Trbuljak’s
concept of “going from the small to the great, and back to the small
the moment his mother sells his off as a boy and throws him out of the
again” stresses the imprisonment in the closed cycle of constant tension,
family home, to his death, when the cleaners of his castle throw away his
with no possibility of relief or release.
7
The term Oedipus complex was inspired by the ancient Greek myth of Oedipus, one of
promised the throne of Thebes to him who could solve the riddle. Oedipus, desperate,
the most tragic heroes in the literature of Antiquity. Oedipus’s parents, the Theban king
approached the Sphinx who asked: “Who walks on all four in the morning, on two in the
Laius and his wife Jocasta could not beget a child for a very long time. Laius went to ask
day and on three at night?” Whithout much deliberation Oedipus answered: “Man. In
advice from Pythia, the Delphic oracle whose horrid prophecy foretold that he would be
childhood a man crawls, when he grows up he walks on two legs and in old age he uses
murdered by his own son. Not heeding her words, Jocasta gave birth to a boy child. When
a stick.” On hearing the correct answer to her riddle, the Sphinx threw herself into the
the child was three days old Laius pierced his feet, tied them and ordered a servant to kill
sea and Oedipus was pronounced successor of king Laius. Once he was made the ruler
the boy. The child was left on Mount Cithaeron where he was found by a shepherd tending
of Thebes, he married his mother Jocasta and thus the second part of the prophecy was
a flock of sheep for the Corinthian king Polybus. The royal couple, Polybus and Merope,
had no offspring and they adopted the foundling. They named him Oedipus for he had
Jocasta bore him four children, first the twin sons Eteocles and Polynices, and then
swollen feet (Greek word oidáō – to swell + pús – a foot, i.e. „a man with swollen feet“).
daughters Antigone and Ismene. After many good years of peaceful life, Thebes was
Oedipus grew up at the Corinthian court not knowing anything about his birth until one
ravaged by the plague sent by the god Apollo. Oedipus then dispatched Jocasta’s brother
day a young drunken man called him a bastard. To find out the truth about himself he went
Creon to Delphi for advice. This time Pythia announced that Thebes would be free of the
to Delphi to consult Pythia after whose prophecy he was exiled from his parents’ home.
epidemic if Laius’s murderer was found. Oedipus then addressed the prophet Tiresias who
She told him nothing about his past. Instead she foresaw a tragic fate for him: “You will
told him the truth: Oedipus had murdered his father Laius and married his mother Jocasta.
murder your own father and marry your mother.” Ignorant of the fact that Merope and
fulfilled.
On learning the truth, Jocasta hanged herself and Oedipus gauged out his eyes so he
Polybus were not his real parents Oedipus left Corinth and went to Thebes. On the road
would not see the reality for what it was. His sons, Eteocles and Polynices exiled him from
he met king Laius who denied him the right to pass believing him to be a bandit. Enraged,
Thebes. Accompanied by his daughter Antigone he wandered around for several years
Oedipus killed Laius and thus inadvertently fulfilled the first part of the prophecy.
and Jocasta’s brother became king. Blind Oedipus and Antigone, his older daughter,
At that time the Thebans lived in horror of the Sphinx, a winged monster with a woman’s
wandered all over the world and after some years Oedipus died in Colonus, a holy grove
head and a lion’s body, who devoured all those who could not guess her riddle. She
near Athens.
MIO VESOVIĆ
about the nickname Hearst gave her – rosebud – a colloquial term for
clitoris, the centre of female pleasure. The film follows Kane’s fate from
ROSEBUD II
The protagonist of the Rosebud cycle is trapped in his desire
16
17
In our talk, the artist related the Rosebud II cycle with the sacrifice of Christ.
tyranny of the father over his sons, to whom he, among other things, dictates
According to psychoanalyst Otto Rank, overcoming the Oedipus complex
sexual behaviour.9 The father’s repression leads to the sons’ rebellion and
is related to overcoming the archaic, animal heritage in humans. In his essay
patricide, a motif in many religions. Christianity reaches a compromise
Totem and Taboo, Freud analyses the original horde he sees as a rough
evolutionary solution for the traumatic “elimination” of the father.
In his text, Babić continues: “According to Freud, the Oedipus complex occurs around
that will, after the mother’s processing, become pleasure, security or a tolerable level of
the age of three and gradually wanes towards the age of six when the child grows out of
excitation. This process of marking the child’s internal bodily experiences in its mother’s mind
the sexual desire for the parent of the opposite sex and identifies with the rival. During
establishes a symbolic organisation of the child’s mind. (...)
father. The father, the real and the symbolic one, closes the circle of mutual desires between
Today, psychoanalysis adopts a much broader understanding of Oedipus complex, but
the mother and the child, and opens up the space to develop a distinct self, a being separate
maintains the essential notion of mixed feelings of love and hate a child feels towards
the parents. A child around the age of three has already become familiar with its social
from the mother.
In this function the father is a real person, but more importantly he is a symbol of the mother’s
environment. With the development of speech he begins to learn about the relations within
desire. The father is something in the mother’s mind, a direction for her desire, and that
the family, in particular those between mother and father, but also between other family
something is not me. The symbolic father is the centre of authority and the symbolic law that
members. At this age the child learns the rules of social behaviour among close family
relations and outside the family developing thus a set of rules that will eventually shape his
The Oedipus complex marks a step toward the symbolic through the intervention of the
resolution is a necessary step in the healthy formation of personality and identity. (...)
prohibits the child’s desire. The key symbol that moves this entire process is the phallus.
The phallus is not the same as the penis. As a symbol, the phallus has different functions in
individual morality. (…) With the onset of puberty and awakening of adolescent sexuality,
the psychological space that the penis as a biological organ. The phallus is similar to the
unconscious conflicts underlying the Oedipus complex flare up again contributing to a storm
father – at the same time a symbol, a metaphor, and something real. The father is a symbol
of emotions and contradictions in the behaviour of an adolescent.
and metaphor for the dissolution of the exclusive mother-child relationship, it introduces the
Among the most controversial ideas related to the Oedipus complex is Freud’s vision of
child into the symbolic space that gives birth to desire, the sense of longing and want.(...) The
the complex as something universal, trans-historic and trans-cultural. In classical Freudian
state of the mother’s desire directed toward something other than the child, partially located
psychoanalytic theory, children’s identification with the parent of their own sex represents a
in the father, and partially even outside of the father, perhaps even unattainable, has been
successful resolution of the Oedipus complex and the key experience in the development of
marked by psychoanalysts as the concept of the phallus. The child assumes it must have an
a mature sexual role and identity. (...) Starting to recognise the parents as a couple related by
imaginary phallus in order to remain the object of the mother’s desire. Since her desire is
sexuality includes the abandonment of the idea of exclusive and constant possession of the
partially directed toward the father, the phallic fantasy is related to the father in the belief that
mother and introduces a deep sense of loss. If the loss cannot be to some extent tolerated
and partially overcome, it could create a sense of threat in the social milieu that dominantly
he is the one who owns the phallus.
The Oedipus complex includes the process of abandoning the identification with an
functions on principles founded on the partially resolved Oedipus conflict. In this idea lies
imaginary phallus and recognising the imaginary phallus and symbolic and in fact never
the basis of what psychoanalysis deems important and a sort of preordaining unconscious
owned. What Freud termed castration could be imagined as a process that includes the
tendency, the same one according to which Oedipus of ancient myth could not escape. (...)
The relationship between parents is genital and procreative, something the relationship
recognition of one’s self as insufficient or lacking a phallus.
This is obviously not about the organ penis but a fantasy about the importance,
between parents and children is not. Such a view of the nature and differences in relations
attractiveness and irresistibility of the idea of being the phallus that has in fact never been
likewise encourages a sense of loss, but also of envy. If the loss and envy cannot be tolerated,
owned, something a boy painfully finds out through the process of castration. The castration
they can become a source of unhappiness, proneness to complaining, lament and self-
includes a process in which the boy accepts that symbolically he can have a phallus only if he
deprecation.” (...) Trying to analyse the Oedipus complex, one needs to distance themselves
accepts that he will never have it in reality, while girls accept the non-having of the phallus
from real people in the relationship and open the mind to the symbolic structure that
abandoning the identification with the powerful phallic mother.
organises the relationship between a man and a woman. In our society, the Oedipus complex
In his discussions on sexuality Freud stressed out the concept of castration. What Freud
is the primary structure that defines our symbolic and unconscious relationships. To put it
learned from his clinical experience is that sexuality always involved an inability to gain
more precisely, the Oedipus complex represents a tripartite symbolic structure (the father,
complete satisfaction. With the intent of completely achieving some satisfaction, one needs
the mother, the child) that interrupts the imaginary dual relationship between the mother and
to abandon the inclination toward total satisfaction, and in this loss of total satisfaction lies
the child. The exclusively dual relationship never existed, except in the child’s imagination,
which is normal in early phases of psychological development. Keeping the illusion of the
one of the elements of Freud’s concept of castration. (...)
Only by abandoning the incestuous object of desire is it possible to find a non-incestuous
imaginary oneness with the mother leads to psychopathology in a grownup. The earliest
object of desire somewhere else. The prohibition of the primary object of desire – the mother
childhood experience is characterised as an absolute dependence on the mother, who
or someone else in her place – creates an absence that makes the subject search in another
fulfils the child’s needs for food, care and nurture. At the same time, the child is faced with a
direction, thereby inaugurating desire. The threat of castration and the resulting Oedipal law
completely enigmatic mother. Through its “reflection in the mother’s eyes” the child gets a
that articulates the prohibition and the punishment, gives the child an orientation without
sense of self. Unnamed excitations coming through the perceptive apparatus and the body’s
which it would remain permanently trapped inside a fear of loss.”
interior seen through the mother’s eyes become organised and thought-out in gesture, word
and expression. The child gains the experience that it is the content of the mother’s mind
if her experience of the child’s internal states is in synch with the child, and if the mother’s
response manages to regulate the experience of the child’s excitation into something
~ Babić, Goran, Oedipus Complex, In: Eduard Klain et al, On Psychoanalysis, Quite Openly
(2015), Zagreb: Školska knjiga.
9
Freud, Sigmund (2000.), Totem and Taboo. Resemblances Between the Mental Lives of
Savages and Neurotics, Zagreb: Stari grad d.o.o.
ROSEBUD II
adolescence, according to recent understanding, Oedipus complex revives again and its
MIO VESOVIĆ
8
What is in the name?
religion, which affected the development of Christianity, the human race
However, Vesović cites Proust in a totally different context: “the artist’s
descends from the Titans, who murdered the god Dionysus-Zagreus and
work, his endeavour to find something different under the matter, the
took over the burden of sin. According to Christian myth, the original
experience, the words, is the very opposite of the work that, in every
sin is the act of rebellion against the god i.e. father. Since Christ pays for
moment we live away from ourselves, is done within us by egotism,
the sins of his brothers against the father with his own blood, following
passion, intelligence and habit, when they stack upon our real
the human principle of retribution we come to the conclusion that the
impressions various expert terms, practical goals wrongly called life, so
original sin is murder. According to the same principle of reparation,
as to hide these genuine impressions from us. In short, this perfect art
the compensation for his death would be the killing of god, his father.
is the only living art. Only this art expresses to others (and shows us) our
Christ’s repentance is apparent in his rejection of women, the cause of
life, the life that cannot be “observed”, whose perceived semblances
the original rebellion against the father. Through such abnegation, the
need to be translated, very often interpreted in reverse and puzzled out
son of God, Christ, overcomes the sins of his brothers and takes the
with some difficulty. This work done by our egotism, passion, our ability
place of his father. The son religion has thus overpowered the religion of
to mimic, our abstract intelligence, our habits... this work will destroy art,
the father, so Christ says: “Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for
it will make us go in the opposite direction, go back to the depths, where
you”, by which he secures freedom for his brothers.
lies, unbeknownst to us, that which has really existed.”,11 continuing: “Of
It is completely unnecessary to ask whether such ideas motivated
course, I am talking about Ivan’s (Posavec) and my photography – Soft
Vesović to create Rosebud. “Mentalisation impoverishes the work’s
Shooting. Our work destroys art, makes us go in the opposite direction,
vitality. The closer the artist is to his unconscious, the more vital his
going back to where something really existed.”12
Since the beginning
work is,” says dr. Babić. Vesović is just like that, an authentic author, in
of the modern age, man has found various ways to interpret works of art.
immediate communication with his unconscious, from where he draws
Despite the value and meanings we ascribe to it, a work of art is a value
inspiration.
per se. “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”13 The need to
explain it, demystify it, so that we could finally own it, will stand in the
„The most beautiful thing is artist’s life is that he cannot work out…
Artist knows the rules of art, but a work of art cannot be created by
way of transcendental experience.
following them. Does the hysteric know the rules by which his illness is
Some works, however, carry an unsettling enigma that we want
formed? Perhaps not entirely, for then he would be a doctor.“
to decipher. Rosebud is just such a work. For me, analysing it has been
Thirty years ago Vesović called his cycle an addendum to “In Search of
like reading a novel by Umberto Eco. You cannot guess at the solution
Lost Time”. When we recently talked about the Rosebud II cycle, he said
until the very end, and the whole truth is unreachable anyway. As the
it again.
master of semiotics said: “A narrator should not supply interpretation
of his work; otherwise he would have not written a novel, which is a
10
We could make guesses about the connection between Vesović’s
19
machine for generating interpretations”.14 Thank you, Vesović, for such an
the experience of his separation from his mother.
opportunity!
10
11
ROSEBUD II
association and Proust’s hero who starts his testimony with a report on
MIO VESOVIĆ
18
The original sin doctrine springs from Orphism. According to that
Freud, Sigmund, Lieberman, E. James, Kramer, Robert, Richter, C. Gregory (2012.), The
Letters of Sigmund Freud and Otto Rank: Inside Psychoanalysis, Baltimore: The John
Hopkins University Press, pg. 2.
Proust, Marcel (1977.), In Search of Lost Time, Zagreb: Zora - Grafički zavod Hrvatske, vol.
13, pg. 14.
12
Matičević, Davor (2005.), Rosebud (Pupoljak), Zagreb: Galerije Grada Zagreba, pg. 1.
13
Shakespeare, William (2003), Romeo and Juliet: The Most Excellent and Lamentable
Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, Act II, Scene II, Zagreb: Školska knjiga
14
Eco, Umberto (1994), The Name of the Rose, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, pg. 541.
20
21
Mio Vesović
Rosebud
1985.
23
MIO VESOVIĆ
ROSEBUD II
22
Mio Vesović
Rosebud
1985.
25
MIO VESOVIĆ
ROSEBUD II
24
Mio Vesović
Rosebud II
2009.
27
MIO VESOVIĆ
ROSEBUD II
26
Mio Vesović
Rosebud II
2009.
Nakladnik, Publisher: Radnička Galerija, Zagreb
Za nakladnika, For the publisher: Leila Mehulić
Autorica teksta i kustosica, Author and curator: Leila Mehulić
Urednica, Editor: Leila Mehulić
Koncepcija postava, Display concept: Nika Pavlinek i Goran Trbuljak
Oblikovanje, Design: Nika Pavlinek i Aleksandar Kovač
Lektorica hrvatskog teksta, Croatian language editor: Lada Klaić
Prijevod na engleski, Translation into English: Danijel Bižić,
Martina Horvat i Ivana Ostojčić
Tisak, Printed by: Cerovski d. o. o.
Naklada, Print run: 350
Odnosi s javnošću i marketing, Public relations and marketing: Leila Mehulić
©2015. Radnička Galerija, Zagreb
Radnička Galerija, 14. srpnja 2015. — 2. rujna 2015.
Izložba je financirana sredstvima Marijana Hanžekovića.
©2015 Radnička Gallery, Zagreb
Radnička Gallery, 14th July 2015 — 2nd September 2015
Exhibition funded by Marijan Hanžeković.
MIO VESOVIĆ
ROSEBUD II
14. srpnja 2015. — 2. rujna 2015.
Radnička Galerija
ISBN 978-953-8091-00-1