• Publisher: *cf.
• 150 pages
• Author: Barbara Borčić
• Original title: Celostna umetnina Laibach: fragmentarni pogled

The internationally established music group Laibach, which has been active since the 1980s, presents the public with an enigmatic aesthetic practice and a complex construct that cannot be decoded without a remainder because the receivers or their perception are a constitutive part of the effect. The decisive role here is played by the knowledge of the context, the symbols, the history of art practices and movements and the privilege of “being there”, while the reception is mainly directed and determined by the strategy of shock. Laibach’s images seduce the spectator – just like their concert performances do. On the one side, there is a fascination with images, dramaticalness, power and the spectacle effect and, on the other, an unease produced by a series of signs and the ladenness with totalitarian symbols, which strengthen the alienation effect.

About the author

Barbara Borčić

Barbara Borčić (1954) is a curator, writer, editor and author of books in the field of contemporary art. She primarily explores performance and video art. She is a programme advisor and former director of SCCA-Ljubljana, Centre for Contemporary Art.