I often feel disheartened by the principles that seem to govern success in the art world. Many of my colleagues and I share the impression that opportunities are often based more on social capital, promotion, and personal connections than on the actual quality of the work. As a result, people with strong ideas sometimes feel like they don’t have the space to present them—unless they are part of the “inner circle.”
These words were spoken by the artist Ana Stojković, whose exhibition “Are You Tired of Breaking Through in the Art World?” was presented to the public at the Vagon Gallery. Ana Stojković is currently pursuing a PhD in Painting at the Faculty of Fine Arts in Belgrade. This exhibition attracted attention because Ana offers a completely different world of a pharmacy. Here, the medicines are not those that alleviate physical pain. For a moment, the Vagon Gallery transformed into a pharmacy where the shelves were filled with medicines with special powers – medicines offering solutions to the problems that artists struggle with daily.
That's exactly what we were talking about.
For further reading of the text, please consult your personal doctor or pharmacist…
I: You use the language of pharmaceutical products and advertisements. How does this aesthetic and linguistic strategy help in critiquing the widespread trust in instant solutions and plastic identities?
A: Well, precisely because there is widespread trust in the instant solutions offered by pharmaceutical companies, emphasizing this phenomenon helps in questioning such trust and the foundation upon which it is built.
I: You also address values that are often considered key to success in an artistic career. What are those values that, in your opinion, rarely face criticism, and why do you think this is the case?
A: The values that were emphasized at the beginning of the conversation, as well as the established systems of functioning, should be subject to criticism in order for things to shift and progress. I feel the same way about artistic works that are subject to the expectations dictated by the discourse.
I: How do you envision an alternative way of breaking through in the art world that is not based on instant solutions and mass success standards?
A: I envision it precisely through the critique of existing systems and deviation from them, lately through as much collaboration and unity as possible, and as little individualism and conformism as possible.
I: What "side effects" or personal challenges have you experienced during your artistic journey that might also be reflected in the themes you address in this exhibition?
A: Side effects are inevitable, diverse, and numerous, similar to those promised with medications, and they come whether you want them or not – tested and proven from personal experience and the experiences of colleagues.
