A Retrospective by Appointment traces common narratives and methods that occur in the media, formats and visual languages in David Maljković‘s work. Rather than present a chronological sequence, it brings together a range of works, as well as elements of installations from different stages of Maljković’s career. Although it deconstructs the genre of a “mid-career” retrospective and fractures the artist’s oeuvre over several different venues, A Retrospective by Appointment looks into the methods, approaches and obsessions that are shared across the works, providing a composite overview of artist’s practice.

The intricate exhibition display developed by Maljković takes a nonhierarchical approach to all the works and objects, putting them side by side on seemingly inadequate, unlikely structures, an approach that aims to alter the viewers’ perspectives with its cumulative effect.

An oversized pedestal that redefines the space of the Gallery Nova functions as an autonomous zone constructed to reshuffle the protocols of viewing his works. Selection spans over almost 20 years; from the early paintings, such as Portrait of the father (1998) to the series New Reproduction (2015), recently shown at the Venice Biennial. Many of the works, such as Independent form (1997/98) or Afterform (2013), demonstrate the artist’s continuous concern for the potentialities a form can take in a particular display. Similar to the process of editing, the selection cuts through different periods to join together a number of seminal works such as Temporary Projection (2011) or Display for Lost Pavilion (2009/2011), with lesser-known  works, sketches and ephemera, such as the silver ball used as a prop in his iconic video Scenes for a New Heritage II (2006). The installation A Space Happened (2000) indicates a new direction for Maljković, when his “situational” explorations in painting started to make the transition to actual spaces, thus expanding from exhibition spaces into wider explorations of history, time and duration.

In a search of an autonomy that can be engaged and socially sensitive, the exhibition makes an alliance with several smaller independent organizations, adding to their visibility. This is the first retrospective by Maljković in Croatia and the fact that it will be shown across three rather modest, non-institutional spaces is both a comment on and a symptom of the institutional framework in Zagreb. But what might seem as a constraint of space becomes an avenue for taking an open, humorous approach to the retrospective format itself. The limited visibility of the venues and the metaphor of the title, infuse the act of spectatorship with less formal and more intimate arrangements.  

David Maljković, born in Rijeka, Croatia in 1973, lives and works in Zagreb. His recent solo exhibitions include: Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2014), Kunstmuseum St. Gallen, St. Gallen (2014), Baltic Art Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead (2013), Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven (2012), Wiener Secession, Vienna (2011), Museo Reina Sofia, Madrid (2009). Maljković has participated in group shows such as: Biennale di Venezia, Venice (2015), Musée National d’Art Moderne Centre Pompidou, Paris (2014), Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2012), MUSAC, Museo de Arte Contemporaneo de Castilla y Leon, Leon (2012), 29th Sao Paulo Art Biennial, Sao Paulo (2010), and 11th Istanbul Biennial, Istanbul (2009).

Curated by What, How & for Whom/WHW

Supported by:
Creative Europe Programme of the European Commission
Croatian Audiovisual Centre
Government Office for Cooperation with NGOs
Kultura Nova Foundation
Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Croatia
National Foundation for the Development of Civil Society
Office of Culture, Education and Sport of the City of Zagreb

The exhibition is a part of the collaborative project This Is Tomorrow. Back to Basics: Forms and Actions in the Future of What, How & for Whom/WHW, Zagreb, Tensta Konsthall, Stockholm i Latvian Center for Contemporary Art /LCCA, Riga.