Igor Grubić's 'Traces of Disappearing' at the Croatian Pavilion in Venice

Igor Grubić presented his long-term photographic project 'Traces of Disappearing (In Three Acts)' at the Croatian Pavilion during the 58th International Art Exhibition La Biennale di Venezia, which ran from May 11 to November 24, 2019. The installation occupied a rough, workshop-like space with low ceilings and painted walls, contrasting sharply with the nearby Prada Foundation's exhibition of Jannis Kounellis in a Venetian palazzo. Grubić's work comprises three series of color images taken over 16 years, documenting post-transition Croatia through themes like 'The Wild House', 'Filigree Sidewalk', and 'Deconstruction of the Factory'. Presented in various formats—on brick walls, large metal screens, and a wooden cabinet with drawers—the photographs avoid depicting people, focusing instead on material conditions and places such as shantytowns and abandoned factories. Accompanying commentary emphasizes values like solidarity and empathy, drawing from Marxist perspectives to critique digital capitalism. Grubić's approach is dialectical, using series to create syntactic relationships between images, distinguishing his work from Soviet-era photo spreads by associating modernity with marginal spaces rather than progress. The project was also published as a book by Sternberg Press in 2019, featuring empty pages to interrupt the image flow. Critics note its humanist intent and speculative engagement with history, referencing Walter Benjamin's ideas on historical materialism.