The urgency of the title is palpable in our present-day reality, in a world where social, economic, and political structures are rapidly shifting towards increasing exclusivity and insecurity. This exhibition presents an overview of the universal need for a fairer and more democratic society, impulses of which have been reflected in artistic works and actions over past decades and continue to resonate today.
The exhibition narrative consists of micro-units connected by a common thread of feminist artivism. Emilie Brigouleix describes artivism as a shift from individualism to collectivism, from endless mere commentary to concrete struggle, from performativity to direct participation, making artistic action democratic, in a truly open dialogue. While the practice of artivism has been more significantly present in this region since the 1990s, it first emerged at the beginning of the 20th century. Therefore, the exhibition layout begins with two actions in temporal opposition but of a similar sensibility: one of the first women’s demonstrations in 1903 against Khuen-Héderváry, organised by Marija Jurić Zagorka, and Silent Mass by Arijana Lekić-Fridrih, which, having begun in December 2022, remains one of the longest-running continuous feminist actions in this region.
The first part of the exhibition highlights the subversive nature of artivism by emphasising the continuity of the struggle for women’s rights and freedoms. It continues with a critique of the historical and political status quo and a deconstruction of ingrained social patterns through feminist action.
The red thread of performance extends into thematic sections exploring personal stories of female artists, dialogues that link artistic practices of re-enactment and intergenerational relations, as well as the ever-present issue of women’s labour.
In short, the guiding principles of the exhibition are the slogans “Deeds, not words” (from the first wave of feminism) and “The personal is political” (from the second wave of feminism). The slogan “Proletarians of all countries – who washes your socks?” under which the gathering “Comrade Woman, The Women’s Question – A New Approach?” was held in Belgrade in 1978, could today be modified to “Prayers, Knights of the Immaculate Heart of Mary – who cooks your Saturday lunch?”
As a unique section of the exhibition, we present a documentary tribute to the Perforations Festival and Night of Performance, with a special focus on the festival’s inaugural year (2009), as well as female artists who marked the late 1980s and 1990s and their artistic groups, such as Daklelosos, Not Your Bitch!, and Théâtre/Théâtre des femmes.
Finally, following this red thread of feminist performance, we return to a quote by Rosa Montero from her novel The Madwoman in Us:
“When a woman writes a novel with a female protagonist, everyone assumes she is writing about women, but when a man writes a novel with a male protagonist, everyone assumes he is writing about humanity.”
The exhibition cycle Too Late to Give Up provides an overview of feminist performance through selected representative works of female artists who have shaped and continue to shape Croatia’s performance scene. The title of the cycle shares its name with the text of Neli Ružić’s work, which illuminated Zagreb, Split, and Rijeka, concisely conveying the message about the role of art in contemporary society. The programme forms part of a broader thematic project by the Domino Association, The History of Political Performance.
Suzana Marjanić
Maja Pavlinić
Zvonimir Dobrović
Artists: Milijana Babić, Selma Banich, Iva Matija Bitanga, Tajči Čekada, Tanja Dabo, Vlasta Delimar, Iva Đorđević, Vlatka Horvat, Sanja Iveković, Ivana Ivković, Ana Janjatović Zorica, Ana Katulić, Dunja Knebl, Andrea Knezović, Božena Končić-Badurina, Ksenija Kordić, Iva Kovač, Petra Kovačić, Nina Kurtela, Sonja Leboš, Arijana Lekić-Fridrih, Vesna Mačković, Nikolina Majdak, Lara Mandli, Kristina Marić, Kata Mijatović, Nadija Mustapić, Ana Mušćet, Irma Omerzo, Marina Petković Liker, Nikolina Pristaš, Dina Rončević, Nika Rukavina, Neli Ružić, Marijana Stanić, Sandra Sterle, Angela Stipić, Matea Šabić Sabljić, Neda Šimić Božinović, Marija Štrajh, Anica Tomić, Ksenija Turčić, Ivana Nataša Turković, Vlasta Žanić, Xena L. Županić, Lucija Žuti