TAMARA ROGOVIC
May 2024
Tamara Rogovic ZEMLJAKINJA
Zemljakinja: Compatriot Terrestrial
âZemljakinjaâ references Nikola Teslaâs thinking about onward movement and increasing energy through: food , increasing mass and self â sustaining; peace , without slowing down onward movement with violence and work , as a means of accelerating onward movement.
âZemljakinjaâ contemplates potential of Space exploration, its ethical governance and how we might perceive Space as the territory for rethinking connection and interdependence of human beings, but also the entire biodiversity of our planet, conditioned by the creation and destruction of bridges and roads of humanity.
Colin Sanderson
Director/Owner, The Artiscience Library, Summerhall, Edinburgh
Some Artiscient Observations on Zemljakinja
Dear Reader, I am delighted and honoured to write a brief introduction to Tamara RogoviÄâs current exhibition, Zemljakinja, which comprises at least two parts: paintings, and the performance conducted on the opening night, from which came the ideas, in words, applied to the paintings.
So, how to translate Zemljakinja? As a Scot, the notion of âthe brotherhood of manâ is familiar enough, being internationally associated with our national poet, Robert or âRabbieâ Burns. Yet, the feminine Zemljakinja? The âsisterhood of womenâ? In Tamaraâs own words (I paraphrase), zemljakinja connotes something deeper than that: meaning compatriot or fellow countrywoman and distinctive to zemljanka (earthling), âyou would use this word to regard someone coming from the same place (often in context of a village or nation), instantly presuming a sense of connection and trust in that person who would have been a stranger or âotherâ the moment prior.â The exhibition title is a semantic inquiry: at its root is the word âzemljaâ, in Serbian meaning Earth and simultaneously meaning âsoilâ and âlandâ - similar to the Latin âTerraâ. Patriotism, according to James Boswellâs fellow traveller, Dr Samuel Johnson, was âthe last refuge of a scoundrelâ. However that may be, Zemljakinja connotes something more benign and wholesome than that, alluding to the common land of Earth that all Terrestrials share and belong to, in all our complex variety.
Bridges and Rivers
The imagery is largely of bridges: both bridges built and bridges broken. Bridges spanning gaps and crossing rivers, which may be taken both literally and metaphorically, reminding us of Ivo AndriÄâs The Bridge on the Drina and at the same time the metaphorical bridging of gaps between the arts and sciences, something of a clichĂ© now, but still useful. Bridges in Tamaraâs paintings are far more than mere archetypal symbols. For example, in the enigmatic image Perseverance, the bridge, stark and dominating the landscape, broken or incomplete, with attention to the construction of the decking, the roadway and its supports, suggests the questions: where have we come from, and where are we going: Quo vadimus? What is the way? The palette is diverse but harmonious, even restful, displaying blues, steely blues, and grey concrete and tarmac, but with a suggestion of living vegetation and its root systems underneath; the legend, âLife Will Persevere,â promising that nature will in time reclaim our passing monuments and constructions.
Tamara draws on Teslaâs threefold list* âFood, Peace and Workâ, recalling our own Patrick Geddesâs âFolk, Work, Placeâ. She also refers to âonward movementâ, so well exemplified in a river, which (pace Heraclitus), paradoxically ever changes yet remains the same. She also describes her main method of working as âthinking through paintingâ, which resonates with Geddesâs use of the notion of a âthinking machine.â
8 Paintings, 9 Artworks
Artwork no. 9 is the performance entitled âMomentumâ, imagined as a key for unifying the 8 paintings on display. Tamara analyses, and then creates a performance based upon, Teslaâs interpretation of man âas a mass urged on by a forceâ She physically guides and involves participants in a âcollective thought experiment on togethernessâ. The individuality of each painting is enhanced by the legends, which are spoken responses by participants and inscribed by Tamara in white chalk, and provide a participatory aspect echoing the fact that we must and we do all quest together.
The major piece in Tamaraâs exhibition is Cosmic Lecture 1, which calls forth her own artiscient research group in Scotland, Asteria Creative. Here, I see not just Mars, as mentioned in the text, ââOn Mars We Will Learn about Peace, in Peace,ââ but other worlds receding into the background; these not in the silent vacuum of space, but in a highly dynamic, energetic environment. Have our ventures into outer space; has the image of âSpace Ship Earthâ,** taught us to recognise our common humanity? Or, are we simply and tragically transporting our human failings to the Moon, to Mars and beyond?
The Arts and Science of Peace
In agreeing to write this introduction to the work of Tamara RogoviÄ, I wished, personally, not only to recall mutual historical relations between Scotland and Serbia, but also to find some personal connections, and as we talked in recent days, they flooded in: the Scottish Womenâs Hospitals and Elsie Inglis, a mission in which two of my great aunts participated, although in France rather than in Serbia; another great auntâs visiting Istanbul, Greece and Yugoslavia in 1936; the
almost legendary work in Central Europe, from the Baltics to the Balkans, of Richard Demarco, with whom I have collaborated since the 1990s, and in ongoing events at our precious venue, Summerhall, in Edinburgh.*** In 1999, Demarco and I mounted a conference on âThe Arts and Science of Peace and the Prevention of Conflictâ.
Twenty years later, Tamara and I first met in 2019, but her having recently graduated from Edinburgh College of Art, we have engaged much more strongly in recent weeks for which I am profoundly happy. I hope that in future we might take up once again, some of the topics and purposes which I have mentioned here.
In conclusion, with what questions does Tamaraâs exhibition Zemljakinja confront us? They are important questions, deep and most pressing questions in todayâs unsteady world. What connects us, one person to another, one people to another? What can lead us to trust one another, without which peace is unachieved?
Enjoy the exhibition. It is, indeed, a âthinking machine.â
*Nikola Tesla, The Problem of Increasing Human Energy: With Special Reference to the Harnessing of the Sunâs Energy, The Century Magazine, 1900
**The phrase âSpace Ship Earthâ is traced to Henry Georgeâs Progress and Poverty 1879. It has influenced many great individuals: inter alia, George Orwell, Buckminster Fuller, and U Thant, former Director-General of the United Nations; and, of course, that great NASA photograph Earthrise ]
*** Wider still, I wish to acknowledge the works of two very significant British writers: Misha Glenny, an expert on the Western Balkans, and since 2022, Rektor of the Institut fĂŒr die Wissenschaften von Menschen, Vienna; and, secondly, Deyan SudjiÄ, of Serbo-Croat and Montenegrin heritage, former Director of the Design Museum, London, who studied in Edinburgh, and in 1999 directed Glasgowâs UK City of Architecture and Design programme.
Perseverance, 2024, mixed media on canvas, 105 x 140 cm
Nucleus, 2024, mixed media on canvas, 140 x 105 cm
Mass, 2024, mixed media on canvas, 105 x 140 cm
Terrapax, 2024, mixed media on canvas, 55 x 44 / 60 x 80 / 45 x 50 cm (60 x 174 cm)
Instructions 1, 2024, mixed media on canvas, 140 x 30 cm (30 x 140 cm)
Instructions 2, 2024, mixed media on canvas, 140 x 30 cm (30 x 140 cm)
Instructions 3, 2024, mixed media on canvas, 140 x 30 cm (30 x 140 cm)
Cosmic lecture 1, 2024, mixed media on canvas, 140 x 206 cm
Performans MOMENTUM
Aleksic Gallery, Kragujevac
May 12, 2024 at 5.30 PM
âArtwork no. 9 is the performance entitled âMomentumâ, imagined as a key for unifying the 8 paintings on display. Tamara analyses, and then creates a performance based upon, Teslaâs interpretation of man âas a mass urged on by a forceâ She physically guides and involves participants in a âcollective thought experiment on togethernessâ. The individuality of each painting is enhanced by the legends, which are spoken responses by participants and inscribed by Tamara in white chalk, and provide a participatory aspect echoing the fact that we must and we do all quest together.â
Colin Sanderson
BIOGRAPHY
Tamara Rogovic (born 1999, Serbia) is an artist based in Edinburgh, UK.
She is a former child prodigy in art with record âbreaking academic achievements. With recognized exceptional abilities since her early years, she was the pioneer of accelerated education in Serbia commencing University studies of fine art aged 14, later continuing studies in France. At the age of 18, Tamara was accepted on MFA Contemporary Art Practice program at the Edinburgh College of Art, The University of Edinburgh (United Kingdom), two years later becoming the youngest Master of Fine Art graduate in the world.
Tamara has an extensive international exhibiting record of numerous group and solo exhibitions in Serbia, France and United Kingdom. Tamara is a recipient of number of awards and recognitions, including âVisual Artist and Craft Maker Awardâ by Creative Scotland and âYouth Heroâ, an award for the young leader in arts and culture by EXIT and NIS Foundations in Serbia. She is also the recipient of UK Visa for Exceptional Talents.
Tamara is the co-founding member of Asteria Creative, a group of scientists and artists at the University of Edinburgh bringing together different sciences, philosophy and art in order to explore the Universe - the technology, sustainability and ethics of discovering and inhabiting celestial bodies and simultaneously benefiting life on Earth. Furthermore, she is the Vice-President of the Scottish Artists Union and a member of several executive committees and boards, as well as the chairwoman of the Intersectional anti-oppression Subcommittee. As an educator, Tamara is lecturing on numerous courses in the fields of creative industries, contemporary art theories and fine art for organizations, local authorities and colleges across the UK and she developed a project of pop-up art school âTASHAâ, delivering free art classes available to all and delivered across Serbia.
Art Practice
Tamaraâs work is directed towards the development of theory and practice of symbiotic relationships between science and art (artiscience), with interest in the ways humans relate to the land, each other, and the universe through rituals, myths and labour.
Her practice considers contemporary discourses within the fields of space exploration and cosmology, through site-specific, conceptual and interdisciplinary work across mediums of painting, performance and installation, often incorporating text and digital elements. Tamara is interested in creating environments where outer space is socially produced, experienced, perceived and imagined in order to contemplate its significance for terrestrial life, questions of peacebuilding, ethical governance and domains of humanities in the future of AI.
Often employing discursive methods through collaborating with artists, scientists and communities, Tamara combines movement, language and audience participation in her performance practice to create âcollective thought experimentsâ of togetherness and has ongoing collaborative practice with the performance artist Tosia Bargielowska Johnsen, MFA. Tamaraâs interest in the relationship between fantasy and social movements has informed her activist engagements.
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS AND PROJECTS
2024 âSEEDSâ, live performance with Tosia Bargielowska Johnsen, Crownpoint Studios, Glasgow, UK
2023 âFair Work, Fair Pay, Fair to the Planetâ, creative industries in UK, key-note speaker, Dumfries, UK
2023 âArt as Truthâ showcasing artistic dimension of truth-seeking, collective exhibit and panel moderator, Thomsonâs Land, The University of Edinburgh, UK
2022 âJust Governance of Outer Space, a collective Thought Experimentâ, audio-visual exhibition and facilitated programme of events, Whitespace gallery, Edinburgh, UK
2022 âMore space for the peopleâ, SaltSpace gallery, Glasgow, UK
2022 âBlackboxâ, duo exhibition with David Reid, Whitespace gallery, UK
2021 âUniversal Matterâ large-scale data visualisation and multi-sensor installation, InSpace gallery, Edinburgh, UK
2021 âSTILL Art Movingâ, Artist in Residence at Edinburgh Palette, UK
2021 âRE:Connectingâ, virtual exhibition, selected artist and artist in conversation with curator, Society of Scottish Artists, UK
2021 âIn Limboâ, Rhubaba Gallery and Studios, Edinburgh, UK
2021 âFarthest Reachâ, site specific live performance with Lily Shaw, Glentress Forrest, Scotland, UK
2021 âFarthest Reachâ, site specific project featuring sculptures, Glentress Forrest and Yellowcraig beach, Scotland, UK
2020 â[SHIFT:ibpcpa] The Biennale of Performance, Collaborative and Participatory Artsâ, The Wall Space Gallery, Glasgow, UK
2020 âBRIDGE - alteration twoâ, live performance with Tosia Bargielowska Johnsen, Generator projects, Dundee, UK
2020 â132nd Annual Onlineâ, selected artist, Paisley Art Institute, UK
2020 âPlanet Cramondâ, self-guided tour with AR (augmented reality) elements on Cramond Island, Scotland, UK
2020 âBRIDGE -alteration oneâ, live performance, âSalon des Refusesâ, Embassy gallery, Edinburgh, UK
2019 âBRIDGEâ, live performance, ECA Degree Show, Edinburgh, UK
2019 âShe found herself already castratedâ, collaborative video installation with Lily Shaw, Whitespace gallery, Edinburgh, UK
2019 âSTRATEGY NEEDS THERAPYâ MFA Degree Show exhibition at Edinburgh College of Art, The University of Edinburgh, UK
2019 âMusic for the Mindâ, The University of Edinburgh Orchestra concert, live performing and painting, Pleasance theatre, Edinburgh, UK
2019 âCOLLISIONâ, duo exhibition and masterclass with Beate Grauduma, Sculpture Court, Main building, Edinburgh College of art, Festival of Creative learning, UK
2019 Research Residency, Gallery Ecosse DâOC, South France
2018 âThe pictures from my earliest childhood in Serbiaâ, solo exhibition and the first retrospective of the works created between age of 6 â 16, House of King Peter I Museum, Belgrade, Serbia
2018 âConfabulate Stateâ, Embassy gallery, Edinburgh, UK
2016 â 2022 âTasha Art Schoolâ, various locations, Serbia
2016 âThe pictures from my earliest childhood in Serbiaâ, solo exhibition of the selection from the painting series, film festival âDays of Bata Stojkovicâ, Solaris Resort Gallery, Serbia
2015 âFragments of the soulâ, duo exhibition, Serbian Cultural Centre in Paris, France
2011 âFirst Solo Exhibitionâ at the age of 12, KVART Cultural Multimedia Centre in Kraljevo, Serbia
Tamara RogoviÄ
Editor : Galerija AleksiÄ
KaraÄorÄeva 26, Kragujevac aleksic.gallery@gmail.com
Authorised: Dejan AleksiÄ
Art Council of the Gallery: Goran RakiÄ, Nikola Ć uica, Milica ZoriÄ
Curator: Dejan AleksiÄ
Text author: Colin Sanderson
Photography: Slavoljub RadojeviÄ
Design : Borko PetroviÄ
Printed by: Grafostil Kragujevac
Circulation: 300 Year: 2024
