P74 Gallery ARCHIVE PAGE

24 November – 27 November 2015
P74 Gallery, Trg Prekomorskih brigad 1, Ljubljana

You are cordially invited to the opening of the exhibition The Second Explosion: The 1990s (Introduction – Part Two) on Tuesday, 24 November 2015 at 20.00 at the P74 Gallery in Ljubljana.

The Second Explosion: The 1990s (Introduction – Part Two) is the second study exhibition of the multi-year research and education project The Second Explosion – The 1990s (2014–2016), a project that investigates the social and political context of artistic and cultural production of the 1990s. In the first study exhibition in 2014 we presented the chronology of the breakthrough politial and social events, the cultural political independence of Slovenia and a selection of the most important exhibition projects on the field of contemporary visual arts. This second exhibition is dedicated to the general cultural pulse of the 1990s, its popular cultural and social dynamics, etc. and to the cultural scene of the 1990s, which we follow through film,  production in the humanities, independent publishing as well as popular music and theatre.

When Slovenia became its own country, Slovenian film – predominantly independent film – found itself in a huge financial uncertainty. Despite the initial problems, the 1990s were a time of interesting débuts – we have exposed those who were either audience favorites, critically acclaimed or successful abroad. In the field of theatre production we especially focus on the creation of non-institutional theatre, that is, the form of non-verbal and movement theatre. In the field of music we have limited our selection to groups and performers of popular music who began their musical path in the 1990s or who in the 1990s saw their peak. We focus on the song writers, the genre of popular rock and the early beginnings of local hip-hop and rap.

In the 1990s the emergence and activity of new social movements are important. Individual groups issued their own publications, bringing new themes and questions to the current social discourse. Among the independent groups we present the periodical of Škuc Association; among the publishers, who issued translations of key and relevant sociological works as well as publications and books, the publishing houses of Krtina, Studia Humanitatis and Študentska založba.

For their generous assistance and participation we would like to acknowledge Dr. Jože Vogrinc (selection of expert publications), Dr. Barbara Orel (theatre), the libraries of the Faculty of Architecture (University of Ljubljana), the Ljubljana City Library, the National and University Library and the Slovenian Cinematheque Museum Department. The preparation and execution of the exhibition project The Second Explosion: The 1990s (Introduction – Part Two) was created in the framework of the INCUBATOR educational program for young curators.

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About the project

The Second Explosion – The 1990s  is a multi-year research and education project prepared and organised by P.A.R.A.S.I.T.E. Institute in partnership with the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art Koroška (KGLU). The project was initiated by a working group comprising Andreja Hribernik, Marko Košan, Jože Barši and Tadej Pogačar. The project is two-fold, taking place in two locations: in Ljubljana and in Slovenj Gradec. This double perspective of the “center” and the “periphery” is a key to understanding and seeking out the most complex images of the 1990s. The project includes research studies, exhibitions, lectures, talks and workshops. The introduction part of the project is intended for the research of the historical, social and political context of the 1990s. A special emphasis is placed on the transformation of artistic practices, new perspectives and radical shifts. We are interested in the institutional development and the relationship between the urban environment and the rest of Slovenia, which was decisively influenced by the official cultural policy of  that time.