LALA RAŠČIĆ
FRAU RITTER 2.0
PROGRAM MEŠTROVIĆEVOG
U GOSTOVANJU
PAVILJONA
POGON JEDINSTVO, 16. 4. 03. 5. 2025.
Frau Ritter 2.0 multimedijalna je instalacija umjetnice Lale Raščić, koja će biti izložena od 16. do travnja do 3. svibnja, 2025. u
POGONU Jedinstvo, u sklopu Programa Meštrovićevog paviljona u gostovanju. Polazeći od audio-vizualnog eseja, instalacija istražuje slojevite odnose između predodžbi pojmova “žena” i “zmija”, motiva duboko ukorijenjenih u povijesti umjetnosti, mitologiji i kulturnim narativima. Kroz kombinaciju sinkroniziranih dia-slide projekcija i pripovjednog glasa, Raščić oblikuje vizualno i diskurzivno polje u kojem se isprepliću povijesne činjenice, spekulacije i kritički osvrti.
Instalacija je prvotno kreirana za Zemaljski muzej BiH, a konceptualno se naslanja na specifičan kontekst tog prostora – prirodoslovni paviljon i prostoriju poznatu kao “zmijarnik“. U tom se okruženju umjetnica susreće s likom botaničarke Hilde
Ritter-Studničke, znanstvenice čiji je rad ostao uglavnom marginaliziran, no čija se figura u ovom radu transformira u svojevrsni vodič kroz narativnu i vizualnu strukturu instalacije. Istražujući zmiju kao biološki fenomen i simboličku figuru, Raščić otvara širi dijalog o odnosima moći, percepciji ženskog tijela te kulturnim projekcijama koje kroz povijest oblikuju poimanje ženstvenosti, znanja i autoriteta.
Motiv zmije provlači se kroz brojne mitološke i religijske sustave – od drevnih božanstava plodnosti do judeo-kršćanskog koncepta iskušenja i grijeha. Ova ambivalentnost – između štovanja i demonizacije – ogleda se i u povijesnim prikazima žena koje su često bile poistovjećivane s opasnošću, zavođenjem i prijetnjom, ali istovremeno i s mudrošću, iscjeliteljstvom i tajnim znanjima. Raščić u svom radu istražuje upravo te tenzije, povezujući ih sa znanstvenim otkrićima, etnološkim predajama i vlastitim obiteljskim narativima.
Formalno, Frau Ritter 2.0 oslanja se na tehnološki i materijalni jezik dijaprojekcija, stvarajući specifičnu vizualnu atmosferu koja podsjeća na zastarjele oblike medijskog prikazivanja. Umjetnica koristi crno-bijeli dia-film i eksperimentira s analognim foto-kemijskim procesima, čime ne samo da referira na povijest medija, već i gradi specifičnu vizualnu poetiku rada. Metodološki, projekt se dijelom oslanja na pristupe povjesničara umjetnosti Abyja Warburga, koji je kroz svoje istraživanje ikonografskih obrazaca i njihove migracije u različitim kulturama stvorio temelj za razumijevanje slike kao nositelja kolektivne memorije.
Završni segment rada poprima bajkoviti ton, povezujući mitološke i osobne priče u završnu naraciju o princezi-zmiji. Ovaj pripovjedni element ne samo da evocira folklorne obrasce, već i simbolički zaokružuje promišljanja o povijesnoj percepciji žene i njenog odnosa prema znanju, prirodi i društvenim strukturama. Instalacija je posvećena prerano preminuloj feministkinji Jasenki Kodrnji, čiji citat služi kao konceptualna osovina rada:
“Iz stava kulture prema prvobitnoj prirodi i ženi slijedit će u osnovi i stav prema tom simbolu – od obožavanja do degradacije.”
U tom smislu, Frau Ritter 2.0 nije samo vizualna i narativna reinterpretacija jednog specifičnog povijesnog trenutka, već i spekulativna rekonstrukcija kulturnih paradigmi koje nastavljaju oblikovati našu percepciju svijeta.
Martina Miholić
LALA RAŠČIĆ
FRAU RITTER 2.0
MEŠTROVIĆ
PAVILION VISITING PROGRAM
POGON JEDINSTVO, 16 APRIL 3 MAY 2025
Frau Ritter 2.0 is a multimedia installation by artist Lala Raščić, which will be exhibited from April 16 to May 3, 2025, at POGON Jedinstvo, as part of the Meštrović Pavilion Visiting program. In the form of an audiovisual essay, the installation explores the complex relationships between the concepts of “woman” and “snake,” motifs deeply rooted in art history, mythology, and cultural narratives. Through a combination of synchronized slide projections and a narrative voice, Raščić creates a visual and discursive field where historical facts, speculations, and critical reflections intertwine.
The installation was originally created for the National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina and conceptually builds upon the specific context of that space—its natural history pavilion and a room known as the “serpentarium.” In this setting, the artist encounters the figure of botanist Hilda Ritter-Studnička, a scientist whose work has largely remained marginalized. However, in this piece, her figure transforms into a kind of guide through the narrative and visual structure of the installation. By examining the snake as both a biological phenomenon and a symbolic figure, Raščić opens up a broader dialogue about power dynamics, the perception of the female body, and the cultural projections that have historically shaped the understanding of femininity, knowledge, and authority.
The motif of the snake runs through numerous mythological and religious systems—from ancient fertility deities to the Judeo-Christian concept of temptation and sin. This ambivalence—suspended between reverence and demonization—is also reflected in historical representations of women, who have often been considered dangerous, seductive, and scheming and at the same time wise, crafty, and in posses-
sion of secret powers of healing and life. In her work, Raščić explores these very tensions, connecting them with scientific discoveries, ethnological traditions, and her own family narratives.
Formally, Frau Ritter 2.0 relies on the technological and material language of slide projections, creating a distinctive visual atmosphere reminiscent of outdated forms of media representation. The artist uses black-and-white slide film and experiments with analog photo-chemical processes, not only referencing media history but also assigning unique visual poetics to the installation. Methodologically, Frau Ritter 2.0 partly draws on the work of art historian Aby Warburg, who, through his research on iconographic motifs and their migration across cultures, laid the foundation for understanding images as carriers of collective memory.
The final segment of the work takes on the tone of a fairy-tale. Linking mythological and personal stories the work concludes with a narrative about a snake-princess. This narrative element not only evokes folkloric patterns but also symbolically rounds out reflections on the historical perception of women and their relationship to knowledge, nature, and social structures. The installation is dedicated to the prematurely deceased feminist Jasenka Kodrnja, whose quote serves as the conceptual axis of the work:
“The cultural attitude toward primordial nature and woman will fundamentally determine the attitude toward this symbol—from worship to degradation.”
In this sense, Frau Ritter 2.0 is not only a visual and narrative reinterpretation of a specific historical moment but also a speculative reconstruction of cultural paradigms that continue to shape our perception of the world.
Martina Miholić
LALA RAŠČIĆ
FRAU RITTER 2.0 2024. - 2025.
instalacija / installation: 6 sinkroniziranih dia-slajd projektora, dia film, zvuk / 6 synchronised dia-slide projectors, dia film, sound tekst / text: Lala Raščić naratorica / narration: Lala Raščić pjevačica / singer: Azra Pondro foto-kemijska i tehnička riješenja / photo-chemichal and technical solutions: Ivan Slipčević oblikovanje zvuka / sound design: Lala Raščić, Hrvoje Nikšić stručni suradnici za sadržaj / content consultants: Nirha Efendić, Adnan Zimić asistenctica produkcije / production assistant: Luana Lojić produkcija / production: <rotor>, Graz; Zemaljski Muzej BiH / National Museum of BiH, Sarajevo; HDLU, Zagreb
zahvale / acknowledements: CRVENA • Andreja Dugandžić • Alma Gačanin • Lejla Hodžić • Lejla Kalamujić • Emir Kapetanović • Klubvizija • POGON osoblje / staff • Luka Miholić • Lidija Stojanović • Sabina Šabić • Danilo Trbojević • Azmir Vatreš • Timothy Weeks • Zemaljski Muzej BiH osoblje / National Museum BiH staff
LALA RAŠČIĆ je multimedijalna umjetnica koja u svom radu koristi različite obrasce materijalne i nematerijalne kulture u građenju narativa koji se manifestiraju kroz video performanse, žive izvedbe, instalacije, objekte, i crteže. Njezini interesi istovremeno su usmjereni ka suvremenim i povijesnim pripovjedačkim praksama, složenim sustavima proizvodnje znanja, kao i folklornim formama i mitologiji. Njezin rad nastanjuje prostor između koncepta i teatralnosti, često konfrontirajući oblike visoke kulture sa popularno-medijskim i tradicionalnim kulturnim izričajima kroz kritičku, poglavito feminističku, poziciju. Uopćeno, njezin rad obuhvaća pitanja estetike, feminizma, historizacije i umjetničke produkcije kroz kontinuirane, interdisciplinarne, i modularne projekte. Utemeljena u narativnom i bazirana na subverziji civilizacijskih općih mjesta Raščić istražuje transformativni potencijal istih u kontekstu suvremenih ontologija i nestabilnih realnosti.
Rođena 1977. u Sarajevu, živi i radi u Zagrebu i Sarajevu. Aktivno izlaže u regiji i internacionalno od 1998. na nizu samostalnih i skupnih izložbi, koje među ostalim uključuju: Kunsthaus, Graz; Manifesta 14, Priština; Röda Sten Konsthall, Gothenburg; Galerija Nova, Zagreb; MAXXI, Rim; Kunstverein Hamburg; MANN, Napoli; KADIST, Paris; MSU, Zagreb; GfZK, Leipzig; Sigmund Freud Muzej, Beč i The Renaissance Society, Chicago. Raščić je boravila na rezidencijalnim programima pri Rijksakademie, Amsterdam; Museums Quartier, Q21, Beč; Platform Garanti, Istanbul; and Cite des Arts, Pariz. Raščić je dobitnica nagrada Future of Europe, Leipzig; prve otkupne nagrade T-HT i MSU, Zagreb, YVVA Zvono, a bila je i finalistica HenkelArtAward i YVVA nagrade Radoslav Putar. Radovi joj se nalaze u nekoliko javnih kolekcija koje uključju KADIST, Pariz; MSU, Zagreb; New Orleans Museum of Art; Umjetnička galerija BiH, Sarajevo, kao i nekoliko privatnih kolekcija u Europi i SAD. Raščić je diplomirala na Akademiji likovnih umjetnosti Zagreb i završila je školu za Primijenjenu umjetnost i dizajn u Zagrebu. Od 2011. do 2018. je bila članica kolektiva Good Children Gallery u New Orleansu. Članica je HDLU-a i HZSU-a u Zagrebu i organizacije CRVENA sa kojima administrira i vodi rezidencijalni program Nona Residency u svom ateljeu u Sarajevu.
LALA RAŠČIĆ is a multimedia artist exploring tangible and immaterial cultural formulae to build narratives that are manifested through video, live performances, installation environments, objects and drawings. Her interests are simultaneously trained on contemporary and historical storytelling practices, complex systems of mediated knowledge production, as well as folkloric forms and mythology. Her work inhabits the space between concept and theatricality, often confronting the idea of high culture with popular, mass-media, and traditional cultural expressions, via a critical, namely feminist, position. Her practice at-large encompasses esthetics, feminism, historization, and artistic production as an ongoing, interdisciplinary, and modular endeavor anchored in the narrative and based on the subversion of civilizational tropes and the exploration of their transformative potential set against the backdrop of contemporary ontologies.
Lala Raščić, born 1977 in Sarajevo, is currently living and working in Sarajevo and Zagreb. Raščić’s work has been presented in both international and regional solo and group shows, amongst others, at Kunsthaus, Graz; Manifesta 14, Prishtine; Röda Sten Konsthall, Gothenburg; Galerija Nova, Zagreb; MAXXI, Rome; Kunstverein Hamburg; MANN, Napoli; KADIST, Paris; Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb; GfZK, Leipzig; Sigmund Freud Museum, Vienna and The Renaissance Society, Chicago. Raščić had attended artist-in-residence programs at the Rijksakademie, Amsterdam; Museums Quartier, Q21, Vienna; Platform Garanti, Istanbul; and Cite des Arts, Paris, amongst others. Raščić is the recipient of several awards including the Future of Europe Award, YVVVA, Zvono Award and was shortlisted for the HenkelArtAward and Radoslav Putar Award. Her works are a part of several collections including KADIST, Paris; Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb; New Orleans Museum of Art; National Art Gallery BiH, Sarajevo and several private collections in Europe and USA. Raščić holds a MA/BFA degree from the Academy of Fine Arts, Zagreb and has attended the School of Applied Art and Design, Zagreb. From 2011 to 2018 she was a member of the artist run Good Children Gallery in New Orleans. She is a member of artist’s associations in Croatia and is a member of the organization CRVENA, with whom she administers Nona Residency, a residency program in her own studio in Sarajevo.
