Toni Meštrović

Untitled (Meštrović vs. Meštrović)

site-specific video installation
HD 1080p, Pal, b/w, silent, 7’22” loop, 2005

“Gemine:Muse”, Young Artists in European Museums, December 1st – 22nd 2005, Ivan Meštrović Gallery, Split, Croatia

Relating the two artists of the same surname always has been extremely provocative. Such coincidence can in fact amuse the viewer, but it is not devoid of meaning within the experience of the younger artist – since the questions about possible relation between the two artists have been very frequent.
It is not incidental that Toni’s presentation goes on in the dining room of the former Ivan’s villa. In the room still maintaining the memory of the residence of the great sculptor and his family Toni Meštrović introduces a part of his experience of his own family history. The artist invokes the presence of the sleeping father, leaning on the table, at the time when he took intensive care of his minor children. The saturation of the relationships between Toni the viewer and the sleeping father left the mark to which the artist returns after many years. The space of memory precisely becomes the referential spot of interpretative process.
Further on, the static of Toni’s black and white photographs positions itself against the static of Ivan’s sculpture. Through his photographs Toni introduces the movement by computer manipulation. It is very explicit when the viewer watches the work for a long time, that is, when he gazes at it. However, dynamic as a property of the sculpture by Ivan Meštrović may be elaborated in many ways.
Thus an interpretative thread of sorts – as analogous, may be integrated in the process of experiencing the work of the contemporary artist and the work of the traditional artist.

text by Dalibor Prančević