2Fik: Reinterpreting Bukovac скачать в хорошем качестве

2Fik: Reinterpreting Bukovac

Documentary about 2Fik's performance at Zagreb in 2013. "When I see these images, when I observe what is happening, two modes, two types of transformation appear to me. And it seem to be more and more important to distinguish one from the other. The first transformation, the term is not the best, is "mental" , while the second is "physical". Of course this distinction is artificial, since the mental transformation appears only because it is physical and the physical, I guess, requires the mental one. However, the longer I observe, the more and more different each becomes, and this growth in difference itself make a difference. The mental transformation is the one that was taking place in the room earlier when 2Fik was alone imagining, conceiving and fixing the outfits of the different characters. The physical transformation is the one that occurs in front of the museum, with the hair trimmed, beard and mustache shaved, according to age, sex, in order to best inhabit, or embody the nature of the character in a way that can be transposed by the photo. This transformation is spectacular and gives its strength to the performance, perhaps even more than the photo. It is this physical transformation that which give surprise to the viewer, who, at first glance, does not recognize that all the characters are played by the same man, 2Fik himself. But I must admit that the really dramatic change for me is the mental transformation. The term is not very adept, but I cannot find a better one for the moment. What I mean, what I'm trying to verbalize, is the transformation that has taken place in the room before the photos are shot. And seeing the two, the before and after, I think that the first may be sufficient or is even stronger because more tenuous , more subtle perhaps, but definitely more difficult to observe. The characters parading in front of lens are all different one from another, all have their own personality even if the artist still has the same beard. The beard, the hair are not the difference that makes a difference. The uniqueness of each character is to be found elsewhere. All are different because they are thought different, as such, for themselves , this conception gives them an identity that does not come from a comparison with the other but a cluster of characteristic traits. It is not the physical as such but the mindset, the behavior, the way of being that make them what/who they are. The beard is not enough, a shrug is. A look, a pout, a slouch is enough to place the character in his or her mode of being, of living in the world. A salient feature that suggests a singularly cognitive space which the character incarnates. If the clothes do not make the man, the way of wearing them does. We are closer to an actor of opera or kabuki theater that transvestism. And this is where the miracle happens. These ways of being, these modes of existence, these postures, this non-verbal features, these attitudes, these states of mind make personalities, characters that the artist embodies. Age, sex, size and even skin color seem different from one to another, amazingly. Without having to pass the physical performance, attitude, proxemics are already enough. This is what the camera reveals and what these images show. That raises the question about what in fact makes the difference, or, what are the differences that make a difference. These characters are not what they are by their physical attributes but much by their way of living, of being in the world. Here sex does not matter, sexuality does, attraction does. Age does not matter, only the adequation with the present does. Characters do not appear by themselves or in how the other, that means us, perceive them, which would suppose an essentialist ontology independent of a relationship to the other. No. The character exists because we perceive it, and we perceive it thus because it gives itself as such. If each one does correctly its part then this perception, this interpretation should be compatible on both sides, otherwise one will be in delusion whereas the other in prejudice. What reveals the image is that the character is revealed in the way of being apprehended, in an in-between and we are finally all the character of another. If the photo by 2Fik is a self portrait it is only of ourselves, an elegant and powerful way to remind us that we do not yet know how to see, that a single character can appear in many different ways. We stop at insignificant details, at appearances; we lose sight of the crucial aspects and miss the best : the mode of being . These are the differences that make a difference. What is shown by these two modes of transformation. The approach of the artist. His performance, his photo." HD • Color • Muet • 57'50