Graduated! (Pictures + trailer)
A lot has happened in the past 6 months since I last wrote here, and I mean a LOT. I received feedback for my performance in the first semester, created a video work, some designs, and thought up a presentation for the final jury moment in June. All of that went well, I graduated from my master programme and most recently, I moved away to Brussels!
So, how did the year go? At the end of January I received feedback on my writing and research into the folk poetry of the Balkans. The figure of the bandit, the Hajduk, takes centre stage in my thinking and the work derives from exploring this archetype. The jury was happy with my progress but wanted more of an artistic result to emerge. Ground work had been done and it was time to leave the books and roll up my sleeves.
Around this time it began to sink in that I was just starting this project, it will take way more than one academic year to complete. Because of this, my thinking shifted towards presenting of the concept and developing a work method. The results of research and the ideas for the project needed to be engaging and presentable.
Lecture performances and video essays were on my mind at the time. I tried to write a stream-of-consciousness script, record myself reading it, and add visuals. Through that experiment I realised there are two elements in it, pulling in different directions: something like a pitch or commercial or trailer; and a more explanatory essay-like text. I extracted the former and turned it into a trailer, the latter was going to be relegated to an installation.
Please give it a watch and I will discuss it further below!
Reklama konacna verzija.mp4 (Own work, video, 2024. With the voice of Joey Jansen, audio production by Lucas Exelmans and Jax Buytaert)
The video is really the ultimate example of the methodology I developed this year. It begins as a simple idea - communicate the material and style of the larger project; I then use whatever is available to me at the time, accepting the limitations, and just making the best of it. In this case, the video is composed mainly of clips from 80s’ films (that take place across a large span of time, but the game will have lots of anachronisms so it fits!) along with some stock and borrowed footage. Overlayed are certain graphics derived from the artistic research undertaken in the first semester. Audio comes from recordings of traditional Balkan instruments gusle and goč, but heavily distorted and manipulated.
The soundscape at the top of the page is from the same source and produced in a similar manner. It was playing on speakers in the installation, setting the mood for the tragicomedy of the work and especially the video.
The images on the game table and conspiracy board are character sheets from playtests, designed pages from the manuscript of the book transformed into coupons, and various illustrations and notes from the research process. Some of it was connected by red string. Books laid out on the side table are collections of poetry, in English and Serbian. They are set on a reproduction of a 17th century map of the Ottoman empire. There are two interventions on the map, the first was done in the 19th century with watercolour as the empire began to lose territory, and the second one was by me with Tipp-Ex, acrylics, and gouache. I also embedded a knife into it for the occasion.
What’s next?
My plan is to seek funding and continue working towards a complete game. In my mind, it will be a richly illustrated letter-sized hardcover, though I haven’t settled on the style yet. This phase should end with a limited ‘artist run‘ print of about a hundred copies or something similar. After that I want to take it to a publisher. It’s very early to cite any dates or deadlines, but now that school is out, I will have more time to post more regular updates.
I managed to squeeze in a few other creative projects lately, and I will post about those as well, so keep an eye out :))))
Until next time!
