Jiři Kočica: Izročilo, razstavni katalog

ˇ Ko~ica: Izro~ilo Jiri

ˇ Ko~ica: Izro~ilo Jiri

9. - 30. 5. 2014

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Vseh vrst izro~itev drug drugemu ~ Ko~ica, ki o prihodnosti od nekdaj razmišlja kot Kipar Jiri o trajnostnem razvoju, svoje umetniško zanimanje predvsem v zadnjem ~asu zasleduje tudi v preseku znanosti in umetnosti.

Znanstveni in tehnološki razvoj je posegel tudi na podro~je umetnosti, najprej z videom, informatiko in vse bolj uveljavljajo~o se digitalizacijo umetniških predstavitev. Izvirnost in prepri~ljivost sta nujna pogoja za razmišljanje o vsaki umetniški stvaritvi, s katero se soo~amo. Od nekdaj Ko~ico odlikuje umetnostna angažiranost, ki presega zgolj umetniško ustvarjanje: zanimajo ga razli~ni umetnostni vidiki, teorije in dejavnosti. Pri svojem umetniškem snovanju v kontekstu z na~rtovano umetnino vedno odkriva samega sebe, ponotranji ~iste misli in jih skozi ustvarjanje realizira v sporo~ila. V vsem svojem umetniškem delovanju je izviren in prepri~ljiv. Njegova kiparska postavitev Izro~ilo temelji na izhodiš~ih umetniškega projekta za novo zgrajeni Preglov raziskovalni center (del Kemijskega inštituta) v Ljubljani. Projekt je vklju~eval sodelovanje z znanstveniki iz Kemijskega inštituta in Zavoda za Gradbeništvo RS, saj gre tudi za del produkcije, ki poteka kot delo v nastajanju / work in progress v tem raziskovalnem centru. Že osnovna zamisel za impresiven umetniški projekt Znamenja znanja / Signs of science v Preglovem raziskovalnem centru, ki povezuje znanost in umetnost, je bila nenavadna.1 Umetniška postavitev Znamenja znanja / Signs of science je vpeta v os zgradbe Preglovega raziskovalnega centra. Osnovna skica prikazuje celo shemo kot drevo, ki raste iz temeljev anti~ne misli, iz vpogleda v fenomene narave na na~in, ki se lo~i od kulta, hkrati pa je vseeno povezano s kultom v toliko, v kolikor se filozofija z na~eli, ki jih je postavil Platon, povezuje z delfsko maksimo, ve~krat omenjeno v njegovih dialogih s Sokratom: Spoznaj sebe. Simbolika posameznih delov umetnine v centralni osi stavbe se veže na razmislek o povezavi sedanjega dojemanja znanosti in umetnosti z dojemanjem teh povezav v preteklosti. Na osnovi skice se je pri~el prvi del realizacije umetnine v stopniš~u, ki priteguje pogled navzgor, proti svetlobi. Velika steklena površina na strehi ima tudi simbolno sporo~ilo, ~e se jo pojmuje v lu~i za~etkov sodobne znanosti v ~asu novega razsvetljenja. V ~asu nove renesanse sodobne umetnosti.

V tem kontekstu tudi ni naklju~je misel o umetniškem delovanju Leonarda da Vincija, o njegovih študijah o znanosti in tehniki, ki obsegajo okoli 13.000 strani zapiskov in risb, v katerih združuje umetnost z znanostjo.

Os zgradbe Preglovega raziskovalnega centra je tudi os umetniške postavitve Znamenja znanja / Signs of science, ki se pri~ne v kleti stavbe. Osnova cele postavitve je bazi~en, iz kamna izklesan kip Gnothi sauton, kar v stari grš~ini pomeni Spoznaj sebe.

Zasnovan je kot skupina mislecev v pogovoru in premišljevanju.

Skupina je postavljena tako, da je del, do katerega dostopamo po

stopnicah, odprt za vstop v obmo~je kipa, s ~emer postane gledalec del kompozicije. Izdelava kipa je potekala od jeseni 2012 do konca aprila 2013. Nad postavljeno belo kamnito skulpturo te~e, oziroma mezí voda. Življenje. Nekaj metrov nad njim je na prosojnem okroglem podestu, (nad)kritem s prav tako prosojno okroglino, drugi – že (delno) realizirani – del umetnine: kolobar z odtisi rok zaposlenih na Kemijskem inštitutu, oziroma, Preglovem raziskovalnem centru.

Nad tem je – v pritli~ju stavbe – umeš~eno kiparsko delo, ki je postavljeno v prostorski triptih : tri miniaturne skulpture iz geopolimera – kot minimalisti~ne oblike krogle, valja in kvadra – spominjajo na izhodiš~a modernizma (Cezanne) in njihovo željo po zbližanju z znanstvenimi izhodiš~i. (Po umetnikovem na~rtu bodo v prvem nadstropju v steklenih boksih ležali odtisi rok, le da bodo uliti v gel in bodo držali v praznem prostoru – v katerega navadno zajamemo z rokami vodo – razli~ne stvari, ujete v prozorni gel. Nekaj teh odtisov je že narejenih in držijo delce gelov z analizami proteinov s sekvencami proteinov ter semena kulturnih rastlin.) V drugem nadstropju bodo v konstrukcijo vpete steklene oblike, ki bodo delno spominjale na digestorije, kakršne sicer sre~ujemo po laboratorijih: ti bodo imeli precej druga~no funkcijo od laboratorijskih, ~eprav bodo v~asih omogo~ali tudi to, da bo obiskovalec lahko s posebnimi rokavicami sooblikoval likovno podobo dela. Na vrhu, tik pod veliko stekleno površino strešnih oken, je na~rtovano in že delno izvedeno kiparsko delo, ki se ukvarja z razmerjem med civilizacijo, njenimi sekvencami in urejenostjo, ki jo nosi s sabo kultura in narava. Ves projekt na Kemijskem inštitutu je zna~ilen primer delovanja ~ Ko~ice. Klasi~na skulptura iz marmorja je preko ve~ projektov Jirija prepletena s sodelovanjem z znanstveniki ter z uporabo sodobnih tehnoloških postopkov v skulpturah, pri ~emer se odpirajo zanimiva iskanja novih perspektiv in pogledov na vlogo umetnosti. Tako tudi pri projektu Izro~ilo sodeluje z znanstveniki. 2 Že naslov razstave Izro~ilo sporo~a, da gre za predajanje na~ ših kulturnih in genetskih vzorcev zanamcem. Angažirani umetnik Jiri Ko~ica se namre~ zaveda, da smo v ~asu velike krize naše civilizacije soo~eni z vprašanji, ki se nanašajo na skoraj neposredno gledanje robov in ob~utenje prepada, preko katerega se trga civilizacijsko tkivo, kamor izginjajo težko pridelane in še težje vzdrževane vrednote: logika, preverljivost, argumentacija, demokracija in medsebojno spoštovanje v enako-pravnosti… O tem konceptualnem delu Ko~ica gledalca seznani že na vhodu v razstaviš~e: na vhodnih vratih je nalepljen njegov konceptualni projekt 95 tez o umetnosti. V tem svojem besedilu se pre-izprašuje o smislu sodobne umetnosti: v zgoš~enih tezah se sprehodi od starega k novem veku in hkrati poda svoje videnje o bodo~i umetnosti. QR koda omogo~a vstop na spletno stran s 95 tezami o umetnosti, ki jih gledalec lahko zato bere tudi doma.

Tokratna razstava je postavljena klasi~no, avtor jo je konceptualno zasnoval prav za novogoriško galerijo. Na ta na~in raz-

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stavni figuralni eksponati – visoki kip in množica malih kipov, ujetih v geopolimerih – spominjajo na klasi~no kiparsko figuraliko ter s tem delno na modernizem. V prostoru so razporejeni odtisi rok iz prozornih gelov, v katerih plavajo gel~ki, s katerimi sekvencionirajo DNA, oziroma pri teh kipih je znotraj njih potekala analiza proteinov.

Odtisi rok so postavljeni na svetlobne podstavke, s ~imer postane prozorna masa gela dodatno likovno zanimiva, saj je na pogled podobna steklu. Šele ko se jih dotaknemo, ugotovimo, da gre za gel.

Na podobnih podstavkih in pod steklenimi vitrinami so postavljeni tudi geopolimerni kipi malih razsežnosti (do višine 6 cm). Ti mali geopolimerni kipci po svojih oblikah spominjajo na minimalisti~na kiparska dela iz 60-tih let prejšnjega stoletja. Nekateri figuralno izdelani kipci so iz voska, nekateri so še dodatno slojeni, modelirani z ra~unalnikom in tiskani s 3D tiskalnikom. Ker gledalec notranjosti geopolimernih mas ne more videti, so notranji kipi predstavljeni tako, da so geopolimerni kipi podvrženi tomografiji: na kratkih video posnetkih gledalec lahko opazuje skrito notranjost kipa in njene plasti. Manjši del postavitve združuje odtise rok v gelu in 3D tiske ~loveških figur, ve~inoma podobe nose~ih žensk, ki so nekako ujete v odtise rok v gelu, hkrati pa to maso nosijo in jo predirajo s svojimi obli~ji. Ve~ji del postavitve zavzemajo bronasti kipci, ki imajo kamnite podstavke. Vanje so vstavljene visoke bakrene palice, nanje pa privarjeni odtisi rok v bronu, ki držijo otroške figurice. Ker so palice visoke preko 240 cm, je zelo težko videt kipe neposredno, saj se skrivajo v odlitkih rok, ki jih držijo na tej višini. Zato so poleg teh visokih kipov postavljene visoke lestve, ki gledalcu omogo~ajo dvig horizonta ter uvid v detajle kiparskih miniatur. V razstavnem prostoru stoji tudi ve~ majhnih figuric na škatli, pod katero so izsekani deli ~rk zavrženega nagrobnika. Nekakšno sodobno moško-žensko zgodbo pa predstavljata dve iz voska narejeni figuri v naravni velikosti: moški in ženska v veliki beli škatli, podobni belim podstavkom za kipe. Skupaj pomenita stik, dotik, genetiko in vseh vrst izro~itev drug drugemu. ~ Ko~ice Epilog: Naslov Izro~ilo ima tudi kiparska fontana Jirija v grosupeljskem krožiš~u. Nedavna razstava v Cankarjevem domu v Ljubljani3 je dokument o destrukciji in poskusu izbrisa umetniškega dela z javnega spomina. Izginjanje javne plastike, spomenika, saj je bila fontana dobesedno izro~ilo prebivalcev mesta, kaže mnogo po~ Ko~ica se dobnosti s stanjem stvari v sodobni slovenski družbi. A Jiri kljub razo~aranju, ki ga je doživel ob uni~enju svoje umetnine s tako pozitivnim sporo~ilom, ne vdaja malodušju. Ne obtožuje, temve~ s svojim umetniškim delovanjem opozarja. Ve~ina njegovih konceptualno zastavljenih predstavitev, prežetih z mirom, milino, poetiko, etiko in estetiko v današnjem brezosebnem in prehitro beže~em ~asu zorí in rojeva sadove.

Tatjana Pregl Kobe

1 Ko so v Kemijskem inštitutu Ljubljana Slovenija pri~eli z gradnjo stavbe za Preglov raziskovalni center, so pri izkopavanju za temelje naleteli na glino. Prof. dr. Jure Zupan in prof. dr. Janko Jamnik sta dobila zamisel, da bi bila glina, na kateri je položen temelj za stavbo, lahko izziv za umetniško delo, ki bi simboliziralo izkušnjo znanstvenega in umetniškega ustvarjanja.

Ideja je bila odli~na in zato so dr. Marjan Bele, prof. dr. Janko Jamnik in dr. Boštjan Genori skupaj z ožjo ekipo sodelavcev, ki so organizacijsko ~ vodili postavitev Preglovega centra, povabili k sodelovanju kiparja Jirija Ko~ico. Na osnovi sprejete idejne zamisli se je kipar v dogovorih z arhitektom Edvardom Mandi}em, ki je stavbo zasnoval, ter ob sodelovanju z dr. Vilmo Ducman iz Zavoda za gradbeništvo Slovenije skrbno odlo~al za izvedbene materiale zamišljene umetnine. Svojo idejo za kon~no podobo osrednje umetnine v Preglovem raziskovalnem centru je sam tudi strokovno obrazložil na informativni spletni strani (http://www.signsofscience.net).

2 Kemijski inštitut: prof. dr. Gregor Anderluh (analize proteinov), Aleš Farkaš (ra~unalniški del); Zavod za gradbeništvo RS: dr. Vilma Ducman (geopolimeri), doktorska študentka Lidija Korat (tomografski videi).

3 Vesna Krmelj, Likovni kritiki izbirajo, prvo preddverje Cankarjevega doma, Ljubljana, 1. april – 4. maj 2014: »Pri~ujo~a razgrnitev je ‘zgolj še en primer’ tiho sprejetih oblik uni~evanja spomenikov in spomina, hkrati pa nas soo~a s skrajno obliko materializma, ko se za golo surovino uni~i umetniško delo in ljudsko izro~ilo.«

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Izro~ilo, serija kipov na visokih kovinskih palicah, bron in baker, višina 245 - 260 cm, 2014

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Izro~ilo, podstavek za Prerokinje, izrezane ~rke ACTG iz starih zavr탑enih nagrobnikov pod steklom, 30 cm x 40 cm x 40 cm, 2013

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All Kinds of Surrendering to One Another ~ Ko~ica, who has been thinking about the future Sculptor Jiri in terms of sustainable development for quite some time, has recently shifted his artistic focus to an area between science and art. Science and technology have made inroads into the world of art through video art, then computers and now with an ever expanding digitalisation of art creations. Originality and persuasiveness are the prerequisites for elaborating on any piece of art we come across.

Ko~ica has always been a committed artist venturing beyond mere artistic creation: He is interested in an array of aspects, theories and activities of art. The additional effort accompanying the art piece he is working on at a particular time, leads him on a path of self-discovery, where he assimilates the purest of thoughts and turns them into tangible messages. All of his artistic opus has been consistently original and convincing. Heritage, his sculptural installation for the new building of the Pregl Research Centre of the Institute of Chemistry in Ljubljana, is a great example of his wider approach to art projects. The project was carried out in cooperation with researchers of the Institute of Chemistry and of the Slovenian National Building and Civil Engineering Institute, and is still work in progress as part of the operations at the research institute. The very idea for Signs of Science—an art project at the Pregl Research Centre bringing together science and art—is as impressive as unusual.1 The art installation Signs of Science is part of the vertical axis of the Pregl Research Centre. The basic drawing shows the entire plan as a tree growing from the foundations of antique thinking, an insight into natural phenomena departing from traditional cults, yet maintaining a relation with them by linking Plato’s principles of philosophy with the Delphic maxim often quoted in Plato’s dialogues with Socrates: Know thyself. The symbolism of the individual parts of the work of art set on the central axis of the building relates to the connection between the current attitudes towards science and art, and the perception of these practices in the antiquity. The first part of the work of art standing in the stairwell, which attracts one’s sight upwards in search of light, began to be created from the rough drawings. The large glazing on the roof bears a symbolic message and evokes the beginnings of modern science in the period of the Enlightenment, the age of the new Renaissance of modern art. A reference to the artistic work of Leonardo da Vinci and his endeavours in science and technology on over 13,000 pages of notes and drawings combining art and science comes natural and is no coincidence.

The axis of the Pregl Research Centre is also the axis of the installation Signs of Science, which stems from the building’s basement. The entire installation lies on a founding stone sculpture: ‘Gnothi sauton’ or Know thyself in ancient Greek. The statue represents a group of thinkers debating and thinking. The figures of the group are positioned in a way to offer an open space to the side

of the stairs, thus making the viewer part of the composition. Work on the statue started in autumn of 2012 and was completed by late April 2013. Water is flowing or slightly moving over the white stone sculpture. That’s life. A few meters higher, there is a round glass mezzanine, covered by another transparent layer, with a second, almost completed part of the creation: pieces of clay with imprints of the hands of the employees of the Institute of Chemistry, i.e. the Pregl Research Centre. Another piece of sculpture has been set in a triptych at the ground floor: three minute geopolymer sculptures, minimalist representations of a sphere, a cylinder and a rectangular prism recall the basics of modern art (Cézanne) and its desire to commune with the foundations of science.(The artist has also planned to install glass boxes on the first floor, with imprints of cupped hands in gel, holding various things set in gel. Some of them have already been completed and are holding pieces of gel with sequenced proteins or seeds of various crops.) Glass shapes, slightly resembling fume hoods usually seen in laboratories will be installed on the supporting structure on the second floor: They are going to be used for a considerably different purpose than in laboratories.

The visitors will be able to use special gloves to form their own shapes that will be part of the exhibit. Another sculpture illustrating the relations between civilisation’s sequences and the intrinsic order of culture and nature—which is currently in the making—will be installed on top, right below the large glazed roof. The entire project ~ Ko~ica’s at the Institute of Chemistry is a typical example of Jiri approach. The traditional art of marble sculptures is linked through several projects to cooperation with scientists and the application of advanced technical solutions to sculpting, thus opening up new perspectives and insights into the role of art. The Heritage project also relies on cooperation with scientists.2 Heritage, the very title of the exhibition already talks ~ Ko~ica about passing on our cultural and genetic patterns. Jiri being a committed artist, he is well aware that at the time of one of the greatest crises of our civilisation, we are facing challenges that are revealing the edge of the abyss, while the social tissue is being torn apart and the achievements that our predecessors fought hard for are gradually disappearing: rationality, verifiability, argumentation, democracy and mutual respect in an environment of equality... Ko~ica informs the visitor about the essence of his conceptual creation already at the entrance to the exhibition room: his 95 Theses on Art are pinned to the entrance door. The text is a reflection and self-interrogation about the sense of modern art: The concise theses are a journey from the ancient times to modernity and the artist’s vision of future art. A QR code offers access to a web site with the 95 Theses on Art, which the visitor can read at home.

The current exhibition has been set in a traditional way and conceived by the artist especially for the gallery in Nova Gorica.

The figurative exhibits—a tall statue and a crowd of smaller ones all imprisoned in geopolymers—while referring to the traditional

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art of sculpture, also relate to modernism. There are hand prints in transparent gel displayed around the room containing titbits of gel used for DNA sequencing and protein analysis. The hand imprints are set on illuminated supports giving the transparent gel an additional visual value and making them appear as if made of glass. Only when touched, one realizes the objects are made of gel. A series of small geopolymer sculptures not taller than six centimetres are also on display on similar supports and in glass cabinets. The small geopolymer statues remind of the minimalist sculptures of the nineteen-sixties. Some of the statues are made of wax, others come in a range of layers and have been created by computer modelling and 3D printing. Since the viewer cannot see the inside of the geopolymer lumps, the statues hidden in the mass are revealed by tomographic scans: There are short videos offering a glimpse of the hidden statues and their layers. A smaller part of the exhibition comprises hand imprints in gel and 3D-printed human figures, mostly pregnant women that seem captured in the gel imprints, while bearing the surrounding mass and with their faces emerging from it. The larger part of the exhibition is made of bronze statues on stone supports. There are tall copper rods set inside the statues and topped by bronze hand prints holding small figures of children. As the rods exceed 240 cm, the small statues are hardly visible being partly hidden in the hands holding them at such height.

There are high ladders at every tall statue, so that the visitors may reach a higher viewing point and see the details of the miniature sculptures. A series of small figures set on boxes and fragments of letters from abandoned tombstones are also on display. A peculiar modern man-woman story is represented by two life-size wax statues: a male and a female figure in a white box, similar to the white supporting plinths. They represent contact, touch, genetics and all kinds of surrendering to one another. ~ Ko~ica’s sculpted fountain at a roundabout Epilogue: Jiri in Grosuplje also bears the name Heritage. A recent exhibition at Cankarjev dom in Ljubljana3 is a document on the destruction and attempted removal of works of art from the collective memory. The gradual demise of public sculptures and monuments, as fountains used to be the legacy of predecessors, bears a strong resemblance to the situation in today’s Slovenia. Despite the disappointment at the destruction of his work of art that bore an exquisitely positive ~ Ko~ica refuses to give in to despair. He has refrained message, Jiri from voicing accusations, but only warnings through his artistic endeavours. Most of his conceptual exhibitions—which exude peace, grace, poetry, ethics and aesthetics in an impersonal and hectic world—have reached maturity and are bearing fruit.

Tatjana Pregl Kobe

1 During the excavation of the foundations for the Pregl Research Centre of the Institute of Chemistry in Ljubljana, the workers came across a large swathe of clay. Prof. Dr. Jure Zupan and Prof. Dr. Janko Jamnik came up with the challenge of using the same clay, on which the building’s foundations have been set, for a piece of art that would symbolise the experience of scientific and artistic creation. The idea gained momentum and thus Dr. Marjan Bele, Prof. Dr. Janko Jamnik and Dr. Boštjan Genorio— together with a small team in charge of the establishment of the Pregl ~ Ko~ica to contribute as a sculptor. The Centre—have decided to invite Jiri artist consulted with Architect Edvard Mandi} , who designed the building, and went on carefully selecting the materials for the creation he had in mind together with Dr. Vilma Ducman of the Slovenian National Building and Civil Engineering Institute. He has given a thorough explanation of the final idea for the central piece of art at the Pregl Research Centre on his website (http: //www.signsofscience.net).

2 Institute of Chemistry: Prof. Dr. Gregor Anderluh (protein analysis), Aleš Farkaš (IT component); Slovenian National Building and Civil Engineering Institute: Dr. Vilma Ducman (geo-polymers), Ph. D. Student Lidija Korat (tomographic videos).

3 Vesna Krmelj, Art Critics’ Choice, Cankarjev dom, First Hall, Ljubljana, 1 April – 4 May 2014: “The current exhibition is ‘just another example’ of the silent acceptance of the ways, in which monuments and memory are being obliterated, while exposing the most extreme form of rude materialism, ready to destroy works of art and parts of our national heritage in exchange for hard commodities.”

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Gnothi sauton, grški marmor, 180 cm, premer 120 cm, 2013

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Odtisi dlani, stekleni kolobarji kot del projekta Znamenja znanja v Preglovem raziskovalnem centru, premer 120 cm, odtisi rok v glino, 2013

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Odtisi dlani, stekleni kolobarji kot del projekta Znamenja znanja v Preglovem raziskovalnem centru, premer 120 cm, odtisi rok v glino, 2013

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Sekvence civilizacije, postavitev v stavbi Preglovega raziskovalnega centra v Ljubljani, steklo, jeklo, silikonski gel in gel za analizo proteinov, 180 cm x 50 cm x 50 cm, 2013

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Postavitev ^uvajev semen, v stavbi Preglovega raziskovalnega centra v Ljubljani, 2013

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^uvaji semen, projekcija tomografskih posnetkov notranjosti geopolimernih kip~kov, 2013

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Odtis dlani, silikonski gel, gel za analizo proteinov, okvir z osvetlitvijo, 12 cm x 25 cm x 25 cm, 2013

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Odtis dlani, silikonski gel, gel za analizo proteinov, okvir z osvetlitvijo, 12 cm x 25 cm x 25 cm, 2013

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~ Ko~ica Jiri Rodil se je 4. oktobra 1966 v Slovenj Gradcu. Študiral je kiparstvo na Akademiji za likovno umetnost v Ljubljani, kjer je leta 1991 diplomiral in leta 1993 zaklju~il kiparsko specialko. Že od leta 1988 razstavlja samostojno (ali v sodelovanju z ožjim krogom polja Sestava), prav tako pa sodeluje tudi v skupinskih razstavah. Imel je ve~ kot petdeset razstav, dogodkov, »dejavnic« in dejanj. Njegovi ~lanki, recenzije in strokovna besedila, ki mnogokrat obravnavajo umetnost kot eti~no dejanje, so objavljeni v razli~nih revijah, katalogih in tudi v knjigah. Je dolgoletni ~lan DLUM in ZDSLU. Zaposlen je kot profesor na Srednji šoli za aranžerstvo v Ljubljani, ob~asno predava na Pedagoški fakulteti in FERI v Mariboru. Z ženo Vilmo Ducman in s tremi otroki živi ter ustvarja v Ljubljani.

Izbrani projekti in predstavitve v zadnjih desetih letih * V letu 2000 je razstavljal v Groharjevi galeriji v Škofji Loki, v galeriji v nekdanji kapeli Sv. Duha v Krškem (mala Kostanjevica) in v galeriji Equrna v Ljubljani. * V naslednjih letih je sodeloval na nekaterih skupinskih postavitvah: na predstavitvi »Metelkove mesto« in posebej prenove zaporov; na bienalu Sao Paulo; pri razstavi »Od sebe k drugim, podobe družin v slovenski umetnosti« v UMG Maribor; pri predstavitvi slovenske umetnosti po izboru predsednika evropskega sveta v prostorih njegovega kabineta v Bruslju ter na mednarodnem kiparskem simpoziju Ostrožac na Uni (Bosna in Hercegovina). * Kot ~lan skupine Sestava (1993–1997) je bil med pobudniki prenove zaporov na Metelkovi v mladinski hotel, galerijo in muzej »Celica«, ki je bil odprt jeseni 2003. * Od leta 2002 je klesal monumentalne kipe za razstavo v cerkvi kostanjeviškega samostana, kjer je bila 2004 odprta ve~ja razstava »Naslovljeno na svobodo drugega« skupaj z Žigo Okornom. Istega leta (prav tako v sodelovanju z Žigo Okornom) je predaval in vodil dvodnevne likovne »dejavnice« za mlade v Albertini na Dunaju. * Leta 2006 je imel tri razstave, od katerih je bila najpomembnejša »Dar biti« v Galeriji Korotan na Dunaju. * Naslednja tri leta je postavil dve ve~ji kiparski kompoziciji na Pohorju ob ustanovitvi Pahernikovega sklada ter leta 2010 na osnovi prve nagrade na nate~aju veliko javno skulpturo–vodnjak v Grosupljem z naslovom »Izro~ilo«. * V letih 2011, 2012 in 2013 je imel ve~jo razstavo v ljubljanski galeriji Equrna, predstavitev projekta »95 tez o umetnosti« v New Yorku ter razstavo v Washingtonu na Slovenski ambasadi ob praznovanju 20-letnice samostojnosti Slovenije. * Po dveh projektih v okviru EPK (delavnica v okviru Univerze Maribor in projekt »Nano-portret«) je leta 2013 sledil najobsežnejši projekt: kiparska postavitev v novi stavbi Kemijskega inštituta, v Preglovem centru v Ljubljani (2013) z naslovom »Signs of Science«. * Leta 2014 je imel razstavo v Cankarjevem domu (Likovni kritiki izbirajo) z naslovom »Izro~ilo«.

Kontakt: Naslov: Kebetova 34, 1000 Ljubljana Telefon: 01 519 45 33: GSM: 031 614 245 E-pošta: jiri.kocica @ guest.arnes.si Spletni strani: http://www2.arnes.si/~jkocic/ http://www2.arnes.si/~jkocic/Slo/biografija.htm

~ Ko~ica Jiri Born on 4 October 1966 in Slovenj Gradec, he studied sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts of Ljubljana. He graduated in 1991 and completed his sculpture specialisation in 1993. He has been exhibiting his works since 1988—either individually or as member of the Sestava Group—as well as in collective exhibitions. The full list contains more than fifty exhibitions, events, ‘activity-shops’ and projects. His articles, reviews and papers— treating art as an act of ethics—have been published in a number of journals, catalogues and books. He is a member of the Fine Artists’ Association of Maribor and of the Federation of the Fine Artist Associations of Slovenia. He is employed as teacher at the Secondary School of Decoration in Ljubljana, occasionally giving lectures at the Faculty of Education and the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. He lives and works in Ljubljana with his wife Vilma Ducman and their three children.

A selection of projects and exhibitions of the past ten years: * In 2000, Ko~ica held and exhibition at the Grohar Gallery in Škofja Loka, at the Gallery of the Former Chapel of the Holy Spirit in Krško (Lesser Kostanjevica) and at the Equrna Gallery in Ljubljana. * In the following years, he participated in a series of Group exhibitions: Presentation of ‘Metelkova mesto’ and of the refurbished prison; the Sao Paulo Biennale; Exhibition entitled “From Self to Others, Images of Families in Slovenian Art” at the UMG Maribor; Presentation of Slovenian Art by the President of the European Council at the President’s Office in Brussels and at the International Sculpture Symposium in Ostrožac na Uni (Bosnia and Herzegovina). * As member of the Sestava Collective (1993–1997), he was among the initiators of the refurbishment of the prisons on Metelkova into ‘Celica’, a youth hostel, gallery and museum, opened in autumn 2003. * Since 2002 he has been creating monumental sculptures for an exhibition with Žiga Okorn at the church of the Kostanjevica Monastery entitled ‘Addressed to the Other’s Freedom’, which opened in 2004. The same year (also in cooperation with Žiga Okorn) he gave lectures and held two-day fine-art ‘activity-shops’ at Albertina in Vienna. * In 2006, he staged three exhibitions, the most relevant of which was “The Gift of Being” at the Korotan Gallery in Vienna. * In the following three years, he installed two larger sculptural compositions on the Pohorje Range for the establishment of the Pahernik Trust and in 2010 after winning the public competition for a fountain in Grosuplje with his design entitled ‘Heritage’. * Between 2011 and 2013, he had a major exhibition at the Equrna Gallery in Ljubljana, he presented his ‘95 Theses on Art’ in New York and had an exhibition at the Slovenian Embassy in Washington on the 20th anniversary of Slovenia’s independence. * The two projects within the European Capital of Culture (a workshop at the University of Maribor and the ‘Nano-Portrait’ Project) were followed in 2013 by the largest one: Signs of Science, a sculptural installation at the new premises of the Institute of Chemistry in Ljubljana. * In 2014, he had an exhibition entitled ‘Heritage’ at Cankarjev dom (Art Critics’ Choice).

Contact details: Address: Kebetova 34, 1000 Ljubljana Telephone: +386 1 519 45 33: GSM: +386 31 614 245 E-mail: jiri.kocica @ guest.arnes.si Websites: http://www2.arnes.si/~jkocic/ http://www2.arnes.si/~jkocic/Slo/biografija.htm

Ovitek/Cover Gnothi sauton, grški marmor, 180 cm, premer 120 cm, 2013 Prva stran/First page ^uvaji semen, geopolimerna masa, ~ebelji vosek in projekcija tomografskega posnetka. Geopolimerna krogla, 5 cm, 2013

Izid kataloga je omogo~ila:

Katalog izdal/Published by: Javni zavod Kulturni dom Nova Gorica, Mestna galerija Nova Gorica – Zanj odgovarja/Responsible: Pavla Jarc – Urednica/Edited by: Mateja Polj{ak Furlan – Besedilo/Text: Tatjana Pregl Kobe – Prevod/Translation: Peter ˇ Ko~ica – Oblikovanje/Layout: Adenda d.o.o. – Tisk/Print: Tiskarna Present d. o. o. – Naklada/Number of copies: 300 Szabo – Fotografije/Photography: Jiri

Mestna galerija Nova Gorica Trg E. Kardelja 5 SI 5000 Nova Gorica T + 386 5 335 40 17 E mestnagalerija@kulturnidom-ng.si W www.mgng.net Urnik: od ponedeljka do petka od 9. do 13. ure in od 15. do 19. ure.

Ob sobotah od 9. do 12. ure.

Ob nedeljah in praznikih zaprto.