Milan Antić

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February 11th – 27th

Updating of the Expression

Expression is usually understood as a kind of self-articulation by means of particular performance.

In the works of Milan Antić, more precisely in his latest series, it is articulated within the process of “reckless” and mostly automatic way of laying of material on the surface; process within which specific quotes from popular culture and art history are re-articulated. Namely, by observing artist’s whole opus, we encounter attempts to speed up precisely articulated process of construction of surface and perceive it in this way through its expressive domain. Here, the following question can be posed: where is and what comprises the intention, within which it is possible to map out the goals of the specified experiment?

The appraisal of the given aspects of the before mentioned series of works is contained in the definitions of the concept of expression, resulting in possibilities of an update of former series into the future ones. We are using here the experience of expressive perception of painting process as update, more precisely update operating between two series of works. The concept of expression can be defined in two basic ways: 1) through affective definitition of the term expression (which is becoming a performance), thus entering the thematization of re-activation of memory by means of images, naturally observing the role of the affect in all of that and 2) by positioning the term of gaze as determining into the figures of voyerism, narcissism, fetishism, sado-masohism, penetration …. The notion of gaze has been reduced in this instance. In Neo-Expressionist painting and trans avant-garde the gaze returns to the body it desires. “The gaze is reconstructed in painting and sculpture as a literal and fictional aspect of the work and receptive situation..“ By reducing the idea of gaze we encounter its conceptual definitions. On the other hand, the mentioned concept has been fully integrated into the body, which is ecstaticly expressing its internal states. Those states of the body are affects determining the power of action of that body.

Critical self-enquiry and circulation of recycled forms is now perceived as an update of the existing relations within the forms of pictorial and plastic expression, which has been interiorized into the body performing it. Finally, it is also manifested “through” slow motion of the given process. Navigation within specified processes multiplies the variations of physical articulations of the process of painting, using the time extensions within the mentioned variations.

In the painting millieu defined as bad painting, modes of painting represetations understood in a very wide sense and non-tautologically are analyzed among other things. In this way, Milan is trying to expand the scope of realization as much as possible and set the multiple disturbances within the determined dynamics of articulation of painting as a final product.

Logical and conceptual patterns in the course of installing into the material cause affective movements that are thematizing expression. This is why the procedure that Milan is following in the process of work on the paintings can be determined by a syntagm updating of the expression.

Text: Velimir Popović
Photo: Stefan Momirov