About the concept:
A Touch of Violence

At first glance violence as a concept appears as self evident; it is about abusive use of force or unjust exercise of power, or an impure act of aggression, whether physical of verbal and it can be both personal and structural. Also another key concept of the exhibition theme, a touch, seems a simple issue as in most general level it refers to a tactile act, person touching or getting touched by another person or thing.

Neither concept maintains this clarity when studied any further. Just to search support from literature, searcher easily confronts vast bafflement; the word touch for example refers also to somatosensory systems and perceptions of pressure, and next to these to more immaterial issues like emotions. And philosophically a touch has been considered fundamental in understanding the bodily self. Violence on its behalf touches issues such as domestic violence and war but also psychiatric disorder and governing capacities of people, organizations and institutions. Like touch it also rejects physical boundaries by penetrating to person’s mind.

This both horizontal and vertical vastness in definitions brings the us to the core of the matter. Rather than trying to define the concepts here, more worthy is to ask how these can be discussed within photography. Can photographs treat issues relating to violence and touch in additional ways compared to texts?

I believe they can. By considering violence and touch with images an artist easily goes beyond words, kind of crosses the boundaries of verbal comprehension, and thereby enters uncertain terrains. Picture becomes an uncomfortable or uncanny carrier, presenter or builder of meanings. An artist approaching the theme a touch of violence should not maintain politically correct argumentation or position –– an uncanny image by its very nature denies them. An image dealing with a touch of violence then should take sides, argue against some beliefs, and as such act politically. This is the beauty of an artwork; at its best it is a discussive, provocative and emotionally loaded entity.

So with pictures dealing with a touch of violence one evidently embraces issues that are controversial and conflictual. At the same time the exhibition image can touch people and make violence to them, autonomously. But these even conflictual procedures are not evil; rather they reveal something essential from our thinking and being. A touch of violence is an issue that is not connected to trends, but surrounds us all the time.

Curator Harri Pälviranta, Finland

Mbi Konceptin:
Nje prekje dhune

Ne veshtrim te pare te duket se koncepti ‘dhune’ s’ka nevoje per shume shpjegime: do te thote perdorim abuziv i forces, ushtrim i padrejte i pushtetit, ose nje gjest i ndyre agresioni, qofte fizik apo gojor, qe ushtrohet ndaj nje personi apo ndaj nje strukture. Po ashtu, edhe fjala tjeter kyç e konceptit te ekspozites, ‘prekje’, duket si nje emertim i thjeshte, pasi ne pergjithesi ka te beje me gjestin e te prekurit, me faktin qe tregon kete gjest qe ne bejme kur prekim dike apo kur ne na prek dikush tjeter apo diçka.

Po asnje prej ketyre termave nuk duket me aq i qarte, kur studiohet me thelle. Dhe ne se nis te kerkoje sqarime nga literatura, kerkuesi do hutohet edhe me shume, sepse; per shembull fjala ‘prek’ i referohet edhe sistemit somatosensorial dhe perceptimit te shtypjes, ashtu si i referohet edhe  koncepteve abstrakte, emocioneve. Ne filozofi ‘prekja’ eshte quajtur themelore per te njohur veten tone si nje trup. Dhuna, nga ana e saj, prek  edhe çeshtje si: dhuna ne familje dhe lufta, por edhe çrregullimet psiqike, aftesite qeverisese te njerezve, organizatave dhe institucioneve. Ashtu si prekja, edhe ajo i kapercen kufijte fizike, duke depertuar ne mendjen e njeriut. 

Shtrirja e gjere vertikalisht dhe horizontalisht e percaktimeve na shpie ne thelbin e çeshtjes. Me shume se nje perpjekje per te percaktuar keta koncepte, kjo eshte nje kerkese per te pare se si mund te  diskutohet mbi to me ane te fotografive. A munden fotografet te trajtojne tema, qe lidhen me dhunen dhe prekjen, duke dhene diçka me shume se sa mund te jape vetem nje tekst?  

Une besoj se munden. Duke e pare dhunen dhe prekjen nga kendveshtrimi i imazheve, nje artist nuk e ka te veshtire te shkoje pertej thenieve, duke i kaluar kufijte e shprehjes me ane te fjaleve, duke hyre keshtu ne zona qe jane te pashkelura. Fotografia behet bartese, prezantuese apo ndertuese e kuptimeve te pavolitshme apo te pazakonta. Duke trajtuar temen ‘nje prekje dhune’, artisti nuk ka pse te mbaje nje qendrim korrekt politikisht apo te trajtoje nje temen korrekte politikisht – nga vete natyra e saj, nje pamje e pazakonte nuk i pranon ato qendrime. Nje pamje qe ka te beje me ‘nje prekje dhune’ duhet te mbaje qendrim, duhet te ngrihet kunder disa bindjeve, pra duhet te veproje politikisht. Kjo eshte bukuria e nje vepre arti; ne me te mirin e rasteve ajo eshte nje entitet qe mbart debat, eshte provokuese, eshte plot emocione.

Keshtu, me pamjet qe merren me ‘nje prekje dhune’ eshte e qarte se secili do kape tema, qe jane te nxehta, qe ngjallin kundershti. Ne te njejten kohe, imazhet e ekspozites vetvetiu mund t’i prekin njerezit, mund t’i dhunojne ata. Por edhe pse do ngjalle kundershti, kjo krijimtari nuk eshte e mbrapshte. Ajo me shume zbulon diçka thelbesore prej mendimit e qenies sone. ‘Nje prekje dhune’ eshte nje teme qe nuk ka te beje me tendencat e modes ne krijimtari, por me diçka qe e kemi vazhdimisht rreth nesh.

Kurator Harri Pälviranta, Finland