On the occasion of marking three decades since the installation of Ivan Kožarić’s sculpture “Grounded Sun” in Bogovićeva Street, Zagreb, and two decades since the installation of the Nine Views project by Dawor Preis, the National Museum of Modern Art has published a book titled Nine Views 20+. In collaboration with the Cultural Information Centre (KIC), the book will be presented on 18 September at 7 p.m. at KIC Cinema, Preradovićeva 5, Zagreb. In addition to Branko Franceschi, Director of the National Museum of Modern Art, the project will be discussed by NMMU museum consultant Željko Marciuš, and art historians Vanja Babić and Saša Pavković, who have followed the project since its installation.
Dawor Preis took advantage of the iconic position of Kožarić’s sculpture in Bogovićeva Street to recreate the entire Solar System in Zagreb, scaled down proportionately with the correct distances between the planets. Unlike the vandalism of graffiti that has marred Kožarić’s sculpture since its installation, Preis referenced it in an inventive, non-invasive, and enduring manner. Organised by the Josip Račić Gallery – part of the National Museum of Modern Art – the artist executed an urban intervention, by positioning the nine planets of the Solar System across the city. Back then, Mercury, the planet closest to the Sun, was installed on the façade of the Josip Račić Gallery.
The locations of the other planets were not publicly advertised at the time, leaving the residents of Zagreb to discover them on their own, thus gradually raising awareness of the entire project. Originally, the project was accompanied by a catalogue featuring nine texts by contemporary art experts – Vanja Babić, Željko Marciuš, Borivoj Popovčak, Olga Majcen, Leila Topić, Iva Körbler, Martina Matić, Saša Pavković, and Ivica Dlesk – which have also been published in the current edition. In the meantime, thanks to the website structured and designed by Dawor Preis, the project has become a global sensation, developed a highly active online forum, and has organically become one of Zagreb’s tourist attractions.
Alongside photographic and archival documentation of the project and its online version, the book offers a new theoretical perspective on the project and its implications for the broader cultural and civilisational context of Zagreb’s central pedestrian zone, as well as society’s relationship with public monuments. The new texts are written by Branko Franceschi, Director of the National Museum of Modern Art and editor of the publication, as well as art historians Željko Marciuš, NMMU museum consultant, and Vanja Babić, Head of the MH Gallery. The book is designed by Ana Zubić, and the project was made possible with support from the Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia and the City of Zagreb.
(...) Davor Preis has integrated the Solar System and its organic circular motion into the orthogonal, poorly functional grid of Zagreb’s microcosm as a reminder of our stellar origins, potentials, and responsibilities. Through astute use of the Internet, his project has achieved planetary acclaim, becoming a spontaneous attraction and a destination for visitors unlike any deliberately targeted and generously funded “tourist product.” More significantly, Preis’s installation, honouring our cosmic origins and an artist native to it, unites all the capacities, strategies, and trends of the modern creative paradigm, offering hope that the light within us has not yet been extinguished. - from the text of Branko Franceschi
(...) Sunčevim sustavom ostvarenim metodom simbolizacije i apsorpcije Davor Preis dostigao je dio galaksije, stvorivši jednu egzaktnu, a prirodnu čaroliju satkanu istim onim sredstvima kojima je imaginacijski i imaginarno sâm sazdan. To ne treba egzaktno elaborirati jer u protivnom, poput filmske, ambijentalno-skulpturalna prirodna čarolija nestaje. - from the text of Željko Marciuš
(...) The Nine Views installation indisputably embodies a distinctive form of artistic intervention. Primarily, in terms of its expansive footprint, it stands as the largest permanent installation in Croatia, and possibly beyond. It entirely precludes the possibility of being fully comprehended in a single glance; instead, a thorough and extended exploration is required to engage with all nine components, or with Grounded Sun included, ten. Thus, observing any one planet inherently entails an acknowledgment of the presence of the others. And the Sun as well. Otherwise, a particular planet loses its significance and becomes an undefined symbol. However, this will not be the case with the Sun. When standing before it, we can experience it in relation to the scattered planets across the city, while also appreciating the entirely autonomous persuasiveness of Kožarić’s straightforward concept of the Sun – which has now been in place for over half a century – having decided, for some reason, to become grounded. (...) - from the text of Vanja Babić
Image: Book Cover / Graphic Design: Ana Zubić
Translated by: Robertina Tomić