FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

Vice Blog

AN INTERVIEW WITH KATARINA ŠOŠKIĆ

I discovered Katarina Soskic's pictures by accident on some blog, before realizing she had recently moved from Belgrade to Vienna, and now studies art here. In the age of forced multiculturalism and expat enthusiasm I felt very drawn to her as a fellow Serb, although I still refuse to believe that her nationality has anything to do with the style of her work. She is simply a good photographer who has a rare sensibility for snapshots. Apart from that, she wasn't exactly hit with the ugly stick and has lots of extremely hot friends that look really good in her pictures.

Advertisement

Vice: What is it like to be a photographer in Belgrade?
Katarina Soskic: It's easy as long as you do it for your own satisfaction or for the small circle of people around you. It is definitely cheap to develop film there, and there are so many talented people with cheap cameras and a good eye. What's not easy is the environment, which doesn't have a proper understanding for photographers. There is no infrastructure keeping up with their needs, and the audience is so small that there is no real chance to get serious. But I have to say there have been some very enthusiastic attempts recently. Things are changing and I believe it will be better soon.

People around here assume that Serbia is a fag-hating, prehistoric country full of brutes. Not exactly the best starting point for a sensitive, aspiring artist.
Well, that's a predictable, if superficial, response. But there are a lot of extremes here. We who were born here in the 80s and were teenagers in the 90s always question if the good times that come after the suffering are their result and if that suffering is the source of our creativity. I still think it's nicer to live in a comfortable and organized society, but I feel like it's the experience we gained that changed our point of view. Living in this kind of environment, even if it is very hard, is very inspiring as well. It wakes us up and makes us more confrontational. But we are still waiting for a quiet time when we can create and produce undisturbed.

Advertisement

What's going on with your picture in this issue? I mean, apart from the obvious.
OK, it is a sex toy on a bed and that is indeed obvious. What's not so obvious is that I completely forgot about this one before submitting it to you guys, both the photograph and the object itself. It is a colorful mixture of memories. Blue bed sheet from my childhood and pink rubber leftover from a long-distance relationship.

Why did you send this one?
First I sent bunch of other still life pictures that I thought were pretty good, but you guys rejected several. Then I found this, which I actually sent as sort of a joke, and now it's been printed.

Ha, oops. Are you mad at us for that?
Nah, that's how it goes and that's good.

You can stalk Katarina through her flickr page and website. PS: If you want to know what Belgrade looks like nowadays, take a look at this.

MAGDALENA VUKOVIC