The quiet Maksimir: photographs from the Maksimir Park
Tihomir Stančec's photography exhibition
Curator: Iva Prosoli
Art design: Tihomir Stančec, Tajana Zver
Graphic design: Tajana Zver
The quiet Maksimir is Tihomir Stančec's first exhibition. However, his photos clearly show us that this is not a work of an inexperienced beginner. Extremely intimistic photographs show us the patient observer in collusion with nature. But these are not randomly caught scenes taken while enjoying one's leisure time. Each of these photographs has a carefully thought-out composition, consciously divided into several plans, with the first one usually left to portray a void space, most frequently a green area in which the dynamics is achieved by the play of light, while the main "plot" is taking place in the back. A concentrated photographer asks for a concentrated observer.
Running away from the cramped spaces of the city into the Zagrebian oasis of peace, Tihomir creates wide compositions, sometimes even merges two photographs into one, just to encompass the space better and present it to the eye of the observer in all its visual and semantic broadness. He spent a lot of time in Maksimir waiting for the perfect scene, in all the seasons of the year and in every part of the day, which resulted in great diversity of colors and notes.
He often takes pictures of people, but never distracts them during their time of relaxation; he portrays their presence from a safe distance, allowing them to merge with nature. Sometimes they are there only as a small hint of something, almost invisible, which again makes the space even bigger and more impressive.
Iva Prosoli
TIHOMIR STANČEC was born in Zagreb, in 1965. From 1988, he was working at the Restoration Institute in Zagreb (today – the Croatian Restoration Institute) until 1994, when he got a job at the Zagreb City Museum, where, after passing the state license exam, he still works today as a Senior Museum Preparator. He took up amateur photography in 1993, when he bought a camera to use in everyday work. He occasionally takes photographs of the town, the countryside and various museum events. Tihi Maksimir (The quiet Maksimir) is his first public exhibition.
Pictures from the exhibition
photo Miljenko Gregl, ZCM