Think Big!
Think Big!
Selected works by O.P.A.
05/30/2019 – 06/10/2019
Opening reception: Thursday, May 30th from 6 to 9 pm
OPA (Obsessive Possessive Aggression) is a collaboration founded in 2001 by the visual artists Slobodanka Stevceska and Denis Saraginovski. Both of them live and work in Skopje, Macedonia.
Starting from the standpoint that art should belong, and be accessible to everyone, OPA’s practices are context based, non-collectible and either ephemeral or distributed in multiple copies.
In its earlier phase (2001-2010) OPA’s focus was the art system, the art institutions and art as an institution. Thus, OPA’s works were often fused with its members’ personal lives and their body of work consists of created situations, durational performances, mockumentaries, etc.
Later on, witnessing the rise of an authoritarian government OPA’s work became much more political. In the period of 2012 to 2015, OPA participated in the establishing and the intensive work of the Kooperacija Initiative, an art collective whose work was openly critical and an alternative to the controlled and decaying cultural institutions in the Republic of Macedonia.
As the questions: Why art?, To whom does it serve?, Should art be useful in any way?, became much more present in OPA’s work, two new, multiple personalities/ identities parallel to OPA were created.
Intrigued to analyze the logic of the market related art practice, in 2014 the “OPA Professional” entity was born. OPA Professional’s goal is producing visually appealing images and objects (sellable, collectible and visually attractive) while developing several kinds of prototypes and strategies of art production. As a result, OPA Professional’s work oscillates between the real and the mockery.
The second entity founded in 2016 was named “OPA Fondacija”. It focuses on developing practical utilitarian solutions and constructive art practices as an alternative to the critical ones. It arose from the necessity for a direct contribution to the community and with a strong belief that solidarity and education are crucial in today’s world.
(www.o-p-a.org)
The exhibition is made possible by the Ministry of Culture of Macedonia.
