I am a Croatian photographer based in Dublin. As photographer I understand the challenges of working with people and places, having respect for boundaries when given access to people. Spending time with people, in order to understand how their past and expectations of the future puts their experiences in context, is central to my research approach. I prioritise methods that support me in my exploration of the feelings and ideas that emerge when I reflect on my own personal journey of growing up in one country and moving to another as an adult. Visual methodologies often include the use of collage and montage as well as analogue darkroom and printing processes. I value the handmade look and feel in photography, accepting and celebrating the type of visual variations that result from working in this way.
After Midnight is inspired by the life and legacy of Croatian writer, Maria Juric Zagorka. The project is influenced by Zagorka's feminist stance and her role as the first Croatian female journalist combating Hungarian influence. It explores themes such as love, religion, gender and women's rights, but its primary focus lies in depicting the responsibility of the photographer and her agency to challenge social expectations.
There are parallels drawn between the challenges faced by Zagorka and those in my own life, particularly as a female artist living away from Croatia. Ultimately, the project celebrates my Croatian roots, exploring aspects of Croatian culture but equally the experience of loneliness in a foreign country and certain conflictual feelings about patriotism. Using symbolic, material elements such as red thread, I make the connection between the goals of feminism and weight of history.
Snapshot Heritage is a photographic project using a family album which was passed down after the death of a beloved great-grandmother. This project delves into the tangible materiality and emotional weight of photo albums more broadly, when most of the photographs have not been captured by the album's owner. Each page of the album tells a story of unity and connection within a family, weaving a narrative that spans generations. Yet, with the death of the album's owner, questions arise regarding the album's place and significance within the family's history.
I use the medium of the Polaroid transfer to complement and enhance the archival photographs.
The project captures the passage of time and the album's intrinsic materiality, blurring the lines between memory and tangible artifact. The imperfections inherent in Polaroid transfer serve as poignant reminders of memory's fragility and the inexo