27th Red Dawns | group exhibition “Unframed Subjects”

02 March 2026 > 30 March 2026 Kindly invited to the opening of the group exhibition "Unframed Subjects" on Monday, 2 March at Alkatraz Gallery at 7 pm. The opening will begin with the performace by Lazar Simeunović. The exhibition is a part of 27 th International Feminsit and Queer Festival Red Dawns. Participating int the exhibition: Petja Muck, Lazar Simeunović, Nal Kocjan, Nuka Horvat.

Kindly invited also to other events of the
27 th International Feminist and Queer Festival Red Dawns

Petja Muck, Lazar Simeunović, Nal Kocjan, Nuka Horvat
Unframed Subjects

The main exhibition of the 27th International Feminist and Queer Festival Red Dawns at the Alkatraz Gallery is once again a group exhibition after five years of solo exhibitions. The exhibition entitled Unframed Subjects features works by the younger generation, which, at the intersection of the charmingly affirmative and the activist, delve deeply into social realities through the topic of gender and address its fluidity, non-normativity and non-binarity. Moreover, in this process of artistic creation, they completely reject the appropriation and objectification of bodies and identities.

In her work titled Canvas of My Own Self, Petja Muck invited drag queens to paint make-up on photographs of their own images, which she had previously taken herself. The artist thus became a co-author of the artistic project she had conceived, bestowing the subjects the power to become unquestionable owners of their own expression. The project unwaveringly demonstrates that portraying others is not necessarily linked to their objectification. By emphasising community (action), she persists on the inclusion of Others and transcends the effective formula of earlier feminist practices, which often avoided objectification by focusing on the self-representation of the artist. With such an approach, the artist consciously enters into a more complex field of depicting others; her 'muses' are not objects without a voice or will of their own, put on display for others, but rather fully-fledged and empowered subjects. The author's approach to the realisation of the project pays tribute to drag as a marginalised, but highly significant form of performative art, which, through gender play, offers a sharp critique of social circumstances.

Lazar Simeunović also used drag in his unique femmage to Tanja Ostojić, a video performance entitled Unaligned, which shall be presented live in a similar version at the exhibition opening event. In it, just like the artist Ostojić did over twenty-five years ago, he searches for a husband with an EU passport. The artwork highlights the everyday situation of the LGBTIQ+ population in Serbia, meanwhile drawing attention to numerous issues in the art system and the labour market, such as marginalisation and the increasing poverty of artists and sexual minorities worldwide. At the same time, alluding to the Movement of Non-Aligned, the author critiques economic, sexual and social structures that restrict creativity. In other words, in capitalism creative freedom too often comes at the expense of autonomy. The work of art Non-Aligned as a tool of empowerment and weapon against social pressures on creation, employs drag approach of performative seduction. The sound of walking in high heels is the background to the narrative of the demand for a dignified life. The latter is articulated through convention of the social contract – marriage on one's (woman's) own terms in the name of feminism. The self-confidence with which she asserts her inalienable right to dignity does not waver. It is precisely this sovereignty, supported by sophisticated sound and visual structure that creates an intense presence and does not allow for indifference or averted gaze.

Empowered and full of enthusiasm, Nal Kocjan continues with his work The Blue Butterfly. The artwork includes photographic portrait studies, playfully celebrating all aspects of trans masculinity and presenting it to the public as an equal identity – to the wider public alongside the binary genders, and to the LGBTIQ+ public as an often-overlooked part of the community that deserves more attention. With digital black-and-white studio portraits, the artist therefore aims to broaden the representation of the trans community, highlight the importance of chest reconstruction and create trans role models that the (trans) community can look up to. The title of the work of art includes a colour that is stereotypically associated with the male gender and a butterfly, which as a symbol of metamorphosis and hope, transforms and liberates. The Blue Butterfly is also available in the form of a zine published by the DIH (BREATH) – Equal under the Rainbow association. In addition to photographs, the zine also contains interviews with the depicted subjects, their unique journeys and affirmations of their identities. The project The Blue Butterfly strives for greater visibility and support for trans men and, in a playfully boisterous manner, raises awareness among the general public about the challenges faced by trans individuals.

Nuka Horvat's particularly interesting poetic-activist work also raises awareness. Their artistic zine titled Transgender Homebody features cryptically blurred bodies and body parts to tell a story about the intertwining, flickering and lively gender and sexuality in English. The author outlines the experience of the chaos of life, charged with eroticism, uncertainty and rejection. The mixture of the frightening and the attractive, of paranoia and momentary feelings of security and fulfilment, fear with electric excitement and the contrast of melancholy with everyday triumphs offer a vivid picture of the reality of existence and the search for home in one's own body, within personal circumstances burdened by the views of mainstream society. Since the artwork is so open to interpretation, despite the fact that it clearly speaks of the trans experience, it allows for identification on several levels, beyond gender. The search for home within one's own gender, body and flesh is one of the fundamental questions of identity.

The works of art in the exhibition praise experiences of non-normativity in the field of gender and sexual expression, using them as a tool to celebrate diversity, play with identities and offer viewers a critique of society. The artworks represent life in all its fullness in a sincere, at times enigmatic, but very open way and from a personal perspective. They completely reject the social and personal objectification of identities and bodies, their own and those of others, thus opening up the possibility of entering a new world where the criteria for coexistence are respect and admiration for the complexity of the subject, the right to self-determination and the possibility of existing beyond normative expectations. The exhibition is not only a representation of individual identities, but rather a collective articulation of the space of visibility.

Nal Kocjan (2002), a queer activist photographer, is dedicated to raising awareness about the LGBTQIA+ community and mental health. He is completing his undergraduate studies in photography at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design, University of Ljubljana. He has collaborated with several youth centres and NGOs. He also photographed the Ljubljana Pride Parade. He has exhibited at the Cultural Incubator in Maribor, in Kranj as part of Kranj Fotofest, as well as at the Škuc Gallery and Youth Centre C.M.A.K Cerkno. In 2023, he participated in a photography master-class with Susan Meiselas at the Jakopič Gallery.

Visual artist Lazar Simeunović (2001, Serbia) works between Ljubljana and Belgrade, where he graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts, and is currently completing his master's degree at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design, University of Ljubljana. He has held three solo and about 20 group exhibitions in Serbia, Slovenia and Poland. He is the cultural editor of the Kvir Zona festival, where he works as a curator. He is a member of the Queer Front and ULUS organizations as well as the Culture Committee of Pride in Belgrade.

Petja Muck (2000) holds a BA in visual communications design. She works at the intersection of documentary, fashion and art photography. During her undergraduate studies, she exhibited as part of a work exchange in Liège, Belgium. She participated in the AppointMENT competition, exhibited at Dobra Vaga Gallery, the Maribor Cultural Incubator, Kino Šiška and the Kula Gallery in Belgrade, and had a solo exhibition at the Domžale Gallery. She participated in the Ajkec Pajkec project at the Modern Gallery (2024/25).

Nuka Horvat (1997) holds a BA in visual communications design. Their comics and illustrations have been published in the Latvian anthology kuš! (2021) and the Czech magazine FŮD (2021). Moreover, they have also designed numerous TransAkcija zines. They have exhibited independently at the eMCe gallery and the DobraVaga Gallery, where they also presented their work in a group exhibition, as well as at the Media Nox Gallery and the Kasarna Karin Gallery in Prague.

 

Organization: 27. International Feminist and Queer Festival Red Dawns
Production: KUD Mreža/ Red Dawns,coproduction:  TransAkcija Association
Curated by: Ana Grobler, Lučka Zajc
Proofreading: Sonja Benčina
Translation: Ana Makuc
Design for the Alkatraz Gallery: Nuri Vidrih
Red Dawns's graphic image design: Janu Krohm
Contacts for the press: Saša Nemec, rdece.zore@gmail.com
Support: Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia, City Concil Ljubljana