Ivan Posavec

26.10 - 16.11.2018

(omladinski časopis "Polet") U srazu slenga i seoske kletve

X

U SRAZU SLENGA I SEOSKE KLETVE...Često se mogla čuti primjedba da se sudeći po snimcima većine jugoslavenskih fotografa jedva može dobiti odgovarajuća slika načina života kakav se odvija u ovim prostorima. Pretjerana estetizacija, svjesno izbjegavanje sučeljavanja s kriznom realnošću ili, pak, nemoć uočavanja gorućih simptoma navode se kao razlozi takvog stanja. Istina, s vremena na vrijeme, javljali su se pojedinci i manje skupine koji su znali iznijeti na vidjelo neke momente te realnosti, ali više od fragmenata teško se postizalo. Uostalom – važi kao opravdanje – slika svijeta danas i ne može biti drugo nego slika sačinjena od samih pojedinačnih čestica. No, da uvijek ne mora biti baš tako, pokazala je nedavno izložba Ivana Posavca u CEFFT-u, Galeriji grada Zagreba. Evo, najzad, jednog fotografa iz čijih snimaka kao da struji život kakav možemo prepoznati u vlastitoj okolini, a ujedno fotografa dovoljno kultiviranog i profesionalnog da mu snimci nikad nisu naprosto anegdote, nego vizualni zapisi koji vode računa o cjelini jednog autorskog «pogleda na svijet». Da bi to postigao, Posavec je morao proći razne škole, od onih redovitih (na akademijama u Zagrebu i Beogradu), do onih praktičnih, preko poslova u novinama, posebno omladinskim kao što su Polet i Studenski list ili u jednoj izrazito medijskoj reviji kao što je Start. Ali ne samo fotografska škola i praksa nego i određeno životno iskustvo koje se uočava na njegovim snimcima, odredili su današnji opseg Posavčeve fotografje. On zapaža i ono mimo čega će mnogi mirno proći, i to zapaža na različitim mjestima i prilikama, opisujući široki krug motiva i prizora. Posavec je svojevremeno bio jedan od autora iz kruga fotografa oko Poleta, ali ne i tipičan «poletovac». Jer, dok je većina skoro redovito bila zaokupljena predstavljanjem svoje generacije, dakle svijetom mladih i svijetom njihove zabave u djelokrugu popularne kulture, Posavca su privlačila neka druga područja, posebno svijet na periferiji velikog grada i svijet sela, jednom riječju folklorni svijet lišen svega folklornog, svijet često vrlo opor i grub, prost i priprost, kakav je već poodavno postao svojstven ovim našim amorfnim ambijentima koji nisu ni pravo selo ni pravi grad, gdje se tradicija patrijarhalnog života umnogome izgubila, a neka druga tradicija, ona modernog urbanog života, još nije sasvim oformila. No, takvi kakvi jesu, ti su ambijenti ipak prepuni nečeg autentičnog životnog i Posavec zna iz njih izvući mnoštvo upečatljivih snimaka. Iz njih se vidi da su to ambijenti s kojima je on srođen, u kojima se rado i lako kreće, koje dobro razumije i posebno osjeća. U isto vrijeme, to je svijet koji ga privlači, ali i svijet prema kojemu kao da gaji i određenu mjeru odbojnosti. Može se to, naime, zaključiti iz mnogih pretjerivanje, iz mnogih drastičnosti koje zrače Posavčevim prizorima: on ništa ne «šminka» nego, štoviše, razotkriva, upućuje na realno, makar to realno bilo neugodno, čak i morbidno. Posavčeve fotografje jesu neka vrsta socijalne kronike s područja kojem je poprište Zagreb i njegova okolina (tek ponekad snima u Dalmaciji i Sloveniji, sasvim rijetko na drugim mjestima). Ta fotografja je, zapravo, tipično «zagrebačka» ne toliko po temama koliko po mentalitetu, po nekom sasvim nesentimentalnom humoru, po potmuloj ironiji, ukratko po specifčnom žargonu za koji je Davor Matičević duhovito ali i vrlo točno rekao da živi u «srazu slenga i seoske kletve». I kao što sleng nije običan i prirodni govor, nego neka vrsta stilizacije izražavanja, tako i kod Posavca nije uvijek riječ o dokumentarnoj nego, s vremena na vrijeme, o «režiranoj» fotografji, o fotografji konstruiranog prizora, koji tek privremeno izgleda kao da je zatečen i realan. Riječ je, dakle, o fotografskom govoru u metaforama: predstava se može čitati na više različitih načina, može imati i više značenja, posjedovati podtekst koji se uočava tek iz pobližeg i poduljeg gledanja. A pritom ironija ostaje onaj dodatni fluid koji obavija većinu tih predstava i pridaje im tu izazovnu mjeru dvosmislenosti. Posavec, ponekad, poželi da se naruga ljudima i događajima oko sebe, ali da u tome ne bi bio sasvim izravan, posluži se sposobnošću kamere da iz realnosti samo izdvoji ono što je fotografski očito (fotogenično) od onoga što je fotografski obično. Ima jedna zanimljiva Posavčeva fotografja koja ilustrira tu provocirajuću ulogu kamere kao svjedoka selektivnog, ali baš zato često i neželjenog pogleda: dok dvoje mladih nešto povjerljivo pričaju, iza njihovih leđa se naginje mladić pokazujući svoje, očito gnjevno lice prema kameri u ruci fotografa. Ovaj čudan snimak kao da postavlja sljedeću dvojbu: ima li fotograf pravo nad svim što susreće u svojoj okolini? Ne vrši li, snimajući, možda neko nimalo bezbolno «fotografsko slatko nasilje»? Posavec kao da o tome nema skrupula: vjerojatno će odgovoriti da je fotografu, slično svakom drugom reporteru, sve dopušteno u ime javnosti medija kojima se služi. Moderni fotograf – Posavec očito dijeli to mišljenje – jest netko tko ima pravo prisvajanja tuđe intime, ali pritom se ne bi smio ljutiti ako naiđe na otpor, ako čak mora pretrpjeti i neugodnu uvredu. Posavec njeguje lik modernog fotografa koji ima smjelosti da se miješa u mnoge poslove: u razna svakodnevna zbivanja, u život drugih, u političke skupove i ceremonije. Zalazi podjednako na javna i u skrovita mjesta, želi da svojom kamerom svjedoči o tome o čemu se u društvu govori i o čemu se šuti. Sve to radi i kao reporter koji zatječe događaje na neprekidnoj životnoj traci, ali i kao već formirani autor, koji od tih brojnih pojedinačnih događaja gradi neki svoj vlastiti pogled na svet. To, istina, nije pogled koji se na svijet «osvrće u gnjevu», ali jest pogled do kraja lišen sentimenta. Prvi puta objavljeno u časopisu foto-kino Revija, Beograd, 1985. Jerko J. Denegri o radu Ivana Posavca

IN COLLISION OF SLANG AND RURAL CURSES...Often a remark could be heard that, considering snapshots of majority of Yugoslavian photographers hardly could be obtained an image of the life style within these territories. Profusely embellishments, mindful avoid any further facing with crisis reality and disability to locate burning symptoms is cited as causes of such situation. From time to time, some individuals and minor groups appeared to catch out some moments of that reality but nothing than fragments were achieved. After all – meaning an excuse – the image of the world today cannot be anything else than picture made of sole individual particles. But it must always be like that shown the recent exhibition by Ivan Posavec in CEFFT gallery the city of Zagreb. Here is fnally one photographer with shots of vibrant life we can recognize in our own vicinity and simultaneously the photographer suffciently cultivated and professional that his shots are not simple anecdotes but visual records taking care of entirety of one author’s view of the world. In order to achieve this, Posavec had to go through various schools from regular (at the academies in Zagreb and Belgrade) to those practical within experience in newspapers, especially youth, such as Polet and Studentski list, or a distinctive media magazine such as Start. Not only education in the feld of photography and practice but also certain life experience visible in his shots has determined present volume of Posavec photograph. He observes what many will pass through and he observes this in different places and circumstances describing wide circle of motifs and scenes. Posavec was one of the authors from the group around Polet but not with a typical membership. While majority almost on regular basis was occupied by presenting own generation, meaning the world of youth and their entertainment in the popular culture framework, Posavec was allured by some other felds particularly the suburban world of the great city and rural world as well, namely the folklore world deprived of folklore, often very biter world, rude and commoner that long time ago became typical of our amorphous ambient neither true village nor true city with lost patriarchal tradition in many aspects and some other tradition of modern urban life still is not shaped. But as such, these environments are still rich in something genuine and Posavec knows how to withdraw plenty of authentic shots. It is visible he got involved with these environments, he moves throughout easily and gladly, he understands well and feels specially. That is the world attracting him while at the same time it seems he keeps certain measure of hostility against it. It is possible to conclude within many exaggerating and drastic scenes of Posavec: he does not make up anything, but even take the veil off pointing to the realistic even if it is unpleasant or even morbid. Photographs of Posavec are some kind of the social chronic in Zagreb and its vicinity (only casually he takes pictures in Dalmatia and Slovenia while very rarely in other places). That photograph is in fact a typical Zagreb photograph and not by its themes but by mentality, some completely unsentimental humour, muffled irony, in short by specifc jargon that Davor Matičević witty and very precisely said that it lived in collision of slang and rural curses. Such as slang is not casual and natural speech but some kind of stylisation of expression, so with Posavec it not always word about documentary but, from time to time, about stage-managed photograph; the photograph with designed scene that just temporarily looks like caught and natural. It is thus the word about photographic speech in metaphors: the performance can be read in many different ways, it can have more meanings, sub-text that is spotted just from more comprehensive and closer lens. Still the irony stays that additional fluid wrapping majority of those scenes giving them a challenging measure of ambiguity. Posavec sometimes wishes to mock the people and events around him but avoiding a direct tone he spread on the ability of camera to select from the reality just things photographically obvious (photogenic) against a photographically habitual. There is one interesting Posavec photograph illustrating that provoking role of camera as witness of selective even unwanted view: while two young people talk something confdent behind their back a young man tilts and demonstrates his obviously angry face in front of the camera in the photographer hand. It seems that this weird snapshot displays a dilemma: whether photographer has any right to all he meets in his vicinity? Hasn’t he made, while photographing, maybe some kind of indolent photographic sweet violence? It seems that Posavec does not worry about that: he would probably answer that photographer, similarly to any other reporter, has everything permitted in the name of media transparency he serves to. A modern photographer – Posavec obviously shares that opinion – he is someone who has the right to take on someone else’s intimacy but must not become angry when faced with resistance even suffering unpleasant insult. Posavec cherish image of modern photographer daring to interfere in many jobs: in various daily events, in life of others, in political gatherings and ceremonies. He equally goes to public and hidden places; he wishes to testify about what society is talking about and what is keeping quiet. He is doing all this both, as reporter trapping events on endless life line and as already shaped author who build numerous individual events in own point of view. That is not a view that looks back at the world in anger but it is a view deprived to the end point of any sentiment. FIRST TIME PUBLISHED IN THE FOTO-KINO REVIJA MAGAZINE, BELGRADE, 1985 Jerko J. Denegri comments on work of Ivan Posavec