silver gelatin photography, (40x50cm, 30x40cm)
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Self-portraiture is a defining element in Vučetić Bohm's artistic journey, tracing its roots back to the very beginning when
her father gave her the first camera. It has since remained an integral part of her practice, evolving alongside her experiences
and perspectives. Self-portrait is also a method that allows the artist not to be in the position of a witness, but to bring a human
dimension and personal experiences into the frame. It becomes means for self-recognition, a process of confronting and
embracing one's ientity amidst the backdrop of global narratives and events. The self-portraits in this exhibition are
part of a larger series that the artist has been shooting for several years, returning
to important places for the history of her family, and country of origin. We see the artist in her grandmother's clothes against
the background of the family house or against the background of the monument to the victims of Yugoslavia in the concentration
camp in Ravensbrück, or with the flag of a country that no longer exists. Looking closer, we notice the direct and questioning
gaze of the artist and the tension from the hand holding the camera remote shutter as if a weapon aimed at oneself.
These non-reportage black-and-white photographs touch upon and reveal multiple facets and complexities of
one single life: personal and collective, forbidden and beyond, traversing realms of gender roles, politics, and intergenerational trauma.
And with their archival distance, they allow one to look at conflicts in a different way, highlighting the attempt to understand and go against the profound disconnect that often exists between individuals and nations where dialogue is stifled or nonexistent.
Can ever the state-sanctioned bloodshed be morally justified?
- Sona Stepanyan, curator, exhibition Victory over the Victory, Köttinspektionen, Uppsala, 2024