Michael Mazzeo Gallery is pleased to present Home Theater, a solo exhibition of large-scale, multiple-panel, color photographs by the New York based, Croatian photographer, Hrvoje Slovenc. The work will be on view from March 3 through April 23, with a reception for the artist on Thursday, March 10, from 6 – 8 PM. This is the first solo exhibition for Mr. Slovenc since receiving his MFA degree from the Yale University School of Art in 2010.

Home Theater is an exploration of domestic spaces in which specific areas have been designed, decorated, and outfitted for sadomasochistic sexual activities. The images grew out of the artist’s personal experiences in which he solicited people on internet sex sites, ultimately gaining their confidence and being invited into their homes. Slovenc’s interest lies not only in the physical convergence of living and performance/recreational spaces, but in the questionable dichotomy of roles assumed by the participants as they move from one arena to the other. He states, “I am intrigued by the ‘scenes’ that people construct in their homes with all their semiotic referents not just to their individual pleasures but, more importantly, to the ones that are socially prescribed. After the sadomasochistic act is over and the ‘performers’ step into the domestic space, the question remains: Do we cease acting or do we merely exchange scripts?”

Using a large-format view camera and supplemental lighting, the unexpected interiors of these mostly New York City residences were photographed in sections over multiple visits by the artist. Later reconstructed as diptychs and triptychs, the carefully considered compositions delineate domestic areas from recreational areas while maintaining the appearance of spatial continuity. Curious juxtapositions of everyday objects and S&M accoutrements, along with eccentric décor and affective lighting lend the images an appearance of artificiality, suggestive of stage or film sets.

Hrvoje Slovenc holds an MS in Biochemistry from the University of Zagreb and MFA in Photography from Yale University School of Art. He currently lives and works in New York City. His photographs have been exhibited in dozens of shows nationally and internationally including the Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago, the Museum of New Art in Detroit, 2010 Art Chicago, and the 2009 Pingyao International Photography Festival. Hrvoje’s photographs are included in the permanent collection of the Museum of Contemporary Photography in Chicago. He is a recipient of the London Photography Award, the International Photography Award, the Golden Light Award, the Photography Now Award, the Mortimer Hays-Brandeis Traveling Fellowship, the BRIO grant, and the Alice Kimball English Traveling Fellowship. Hrvoje is currently part of AIM residency program at the Bronx Museum of Art and is preparing an installation for The Bronx Museum of the Arts Biennial 2011.