As part of the Care Ecologies: New Alliances film program, in March we welcome the Slovenian artist and curator Maja Hodošček. We are going to showcase her two films, Training and For Your Pleasure, followed by a discussion about the artist’s practice and her position within the contemporary art system. In her recent practice, Hodošček explores neoliberalism and precarious work stemming from self-entrepreneurship, primarily through video works, which are partly based on an unusual and seemingly simple experiment.

In Training (2019), Maja Hodošček attends two intensive, but different training sessions at a local high school. What we hear in the film is a training intended for secondary school teachers, led by a professional trainer. The goal of the training session is to present the idea of entrepreneurship as a model for advanced pedagogy. The trainer uses a highly inspirational approach in order to convince the teachers that a shift towards an entrepreneurial mode of thinking is the only possible way of teaching that enables them to deal with the challenges of contemporary life. On the other hand, we observe a training session in the gym during regular school hours, where the students are tired and exercise very slowly, with some nearly falling asleep. The second film we’re going to watch is For Your Pleasure (2021), which is part of a series of works that share a similar concept. A young actress performs in front of the camera for several hours without any instructions or a script, relying on herself as the sole source of material. She addresses the camera’s lens as an instrument of desubjectivization, scrutinizing the expectations imposed upon her by the visual regime, while simultaneously rejecting identification with the constructed fantasies that are projected onto her. The film is an intense exploration of emotions and attitudes associated with the system of categorization and precarious work, challenging both the viewers and the director herself.

Maja Hodošček (1984, Slovenia) received her master’s degree from the Dutch Art Institute in Arnhem, the Netherlands. She uses video and installations in her work, exploring social relations in the context of the politics of cooperation and exchange, with a special emphasis on representation in relation to documentary. She focuses on the concept of work as a means of self-realization, the dynamics of work and the work process, their transformative potential, and the position of the subject within the organization and work structure. She has exhibited her work at numerous solo shows (City Gallery Striegl, Sisak; Center for Contemporary Arts, Celje; KGLU – Koroška galerija likovnih umetnosti, Slovenj Gradec; Dom omladine, Belgrade; Museum of Contemporary Art Metelkova, Ljubljana; P74 Gallery, Ljubljana; Gregor Podnar Gallery, Ljubljana) as well as group shows (Symptoms of the Future, Out of Sight, Antwerp; Hidden Curriculum, tranzit.sk, Bratislava; Silence is Deafness Here, Podroom Gallery, Belgrade; Beyond the Globe, Modern Gallery, Ljubljana; South by South East, Guangdong Times Museum, China; Pipe Dream, Kunsthalle Exnergasse, Vienna; Museum of Yugoslavia, Belgrade; Museum of Contemporary Art Metelkova, Ljubljana; deAppel, Amsterdam). In 2021, she received the Celjska Zvezda Award; in 2020, the Jakopič Award for achievements in the field of fine arts; and in 2010, the OHO Award. She was an artist-in-residence at MuseumsQuartier (Vienna), Tabakalera – International Centre of Contemporary Culture in San Sebastian (2019), and ISCP in New York (2010). Artist’s website. 

The conversation with Maja Hodošček is part of the Care Ecologies: New Alliances program, supported by the Croatian Audiovisual Centre and the City Office for Culture and Civil Society.

The program is supported by:
City Office for Culture and Civil Society
Croatian Audiovisual Centre (HAVC)
Kultura Nova Foundation