In Search of Man

Amer Hadžić i Denis Haračić

June 12 – July 12, 2024.

Photography: Tanjug / Marko Đoković

If, at first glance, the works of Amer Hadžić and Denis Haračić seem quite different, they are connected by a very strong thread: the absence of man! Thus, the central motif of all the presented works is the search for him. This very absence of man and the human factor poetically runs through the works of both artists. In Hadžić's works, we encounter metaphysical scenes where we see traces of human activity on walls and structures that resemble the archaic architecture of Sarajevo's streets and neighborhoods. The artist addresses the issues of the 21st century by relying on the familiar and nostalgic language of popular culture, while the messages written on the canvases often allude to sarcastic expressions, in line with the global tendencies of capitalist society. In Hadžić's work, man is physically absent, and it could be said that he exists only as an observer, in the role of the audience placed before the artist's fantastical urban landscapes. In Denis Haračić's case, we are confronted with portraits that directly speak to ideas of non-belonging, alienation, and dehumanization. Although portraiture typically involves depicting a human being, Haračić's work attempts to present what often remains unspoken in the human factor. Contrary to the image of forced perfection and narcissism to which modern social life is attached, the artist strives for a portrayal of the human ideal within the realms of the obscure, the maladapted, and the imperfect. Accordingly, Haračić's search for man begins with the search for the identification of social pathology and the diagnosis of key problems we collectively face in our time.