The 35th anniversary of the artist collective MONTAЖ$TROJ was celebrated at the Gavella Drama Theatre. Paying tribute to the victims of the tragedy at the Prečko Elementary School, the event was held without the usual celebration. The program was hosted by Ivana Dragičević, journalist and the collective’s long-time collaborator, while Leo Rafolt, author of a book about the collective, Ana Stunić, long-time collaborator, and Gordan Bosanac, member of the European Parliament and one of the first members of the collective, shared their memories of their work and collaboration with MONTAЖ$TROJ.
On December 22, 1989, MONTAŽ$TROJ performed its first artistic action, manifestly proclaiming the program of the “theatricalization of football culture”. This set the tone for a unique cultural project that combines different artistic practices and new media, focusing on socially responsible action. At a time of great political and social changes, a group of young people were searching for new forms of artistic expression outside of the framework of institutional culture. The first performance “FOOTBALL BOOT IN THE ART GALLERY”, inspired by Malevich’s “Sportsmen”, was a response to the dynamic, chaotic reality of that time. The performance laid the foundations of MONTAŽ$TROJ as an interdisciplinary project. The name of the collective, implying “montage of attractions”, indicates its mission of producing artistic and social attractions through various media.
MONTAЖ$TROJ’s work has not been limited to theater; it has included gallery and public spaces, music and audiovisual media. Always rooted in the spirit of the times, the collective has evolved, maintaining a focus on socially responsible action. “Although we initially imagined MONTAЖ$TROJ as a five-year project, it has been operating for 35 years as a platform for criticism, dialogue and responsibility towards the society in which it was created,” said Borut Šeparović, the collective’s founder.
Over the past 35 years, MONTAЖ$TROJ has become synonymous with engaged art in Croatia, highlighting social issues and raising often overlooked questions. Their projects are processes of creation, collaboration and reflection. The collective’s history mirrors turbulent social events, using art as a tool for research and change. The collective has gone through different phases, from football and documentary to political and activist expression, but has remained faithful to the idea of uniting artistic disciplines and media culture for the purpose of social responsibility.
“For us in MONTAЖ$TROJ, theater is a common good. It must be a space of awareness, questioning and challenge – not only for the audience but also for ourselves,” emphasized Šeparović. “Our art is not just a reflection of reality, but a tool for changing it. While the crisis continues, MONTAЖ$TROJ continues to ask questions and seek answers, because renouncing engagement means participating in silence. And silence is never neutral.”
The MONTAЖ$TROJ artist collective is celebrating 35 years of activity with a new original project by Borut Šeparović titled “The Blind Leading the Blind”, staged in collaboration with the Gavella Drama Theatre. The premiere is scheduled for January 22, 2025, and the project was presented by playwright Filip Rutić and actors Sven Medvešek, Filip Križan, Franjo Dijak, Ivan Grčić, Anđela Ramljak and Rok Juričić, alongside Borut Šeparović.
The play explores the phenomenon of post-truth through the visual and conceptual framework of Bruegel’s painting The Parable of the Blind. It also thematizes the complex relationship between humans and artificial intelligence, questioning how technology changes reality and makes us “blind” to the truth due to information confusion and prejudice. It draws inspiration from the works of Karel Čapek (R.U.R.) and Maurice Maeterlinck (The Blind), opening up the themes of moral consequences of technology, isolation and existential fear. Key parts of the play deal with issues of identity, work and leisure. The non-linear structure and multimedia techniques further emphasize the layered nature of the story, making the play visually and narratively complex.
The theater project “The Blind Leading the Blind” is based on the visual and conceptual framework of Pieter Bruegel the Elder’s painting The Parable of the Blind, which interprets the biblical parable from the Gospel of Matthew (15:14). In this parable, Jesus says: “If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” In today’s era, marked by technological progress and the dominance of information, there is an ever-present danger of manipulation and disinformation. Bruegel’s painting becomes a metaphorical warning about the risks of blindly accepting information and emphasizes the need for critical thinking. In late capitalism, where the media encourages sensationalism for profit, the boundaries between reality and fiction become blurred. Art takes on a dual role: it provides introspective insight into subjective realities, but it can also serve as a tool of manipulation.
This piece is MONTAЖ$TROJ’s first collaboration with the Gavella Drama Theatre, and the play “The Blind Leading the Blind” seeks to question the boundaries of theatrical expression and its role in contemporary society, a work that combines traditional art forms with technological experiences and approaches, and invites the audience to reflect on their own role in the contemporary digital world.
