During my last visit to Belgrade I had a great privilege of meeting Marc Schneider, aka Marko Krojac, a German photographer, former member of the Berlin squat scene and a resident photographer aboard the MS Stubnitz. Since 2002, Marc has been dividing his time between Berlin and former Yugoslav republics, particularly Belgrade, where he acts as a band manager, photographer and a chauffeur of the local group, “Klopka za Pionira”.
What Marc is perhaps best known for is his photographic documentation of the WWII monuments which had been originally commissioned by the former Yugoslav president Tito between the 1940s and the 1980s. Though created by top sculptors, architects and master craftsmen, most of these monuments were erected in isolated and remote areas, marking locations where some of the crucial WWII battles took place. Marc makes a point of going back and revisiting the same monuments over and over again; the resulting before and after shots show an interesting range in attitudes towards history in former Yugoslav republics; some show utter neglect and desecration, some show – surprisingly so – some amount of care, even renovation. Naturally, this lead Mark into an ongoing search for public art in all former Yugoslav republics, including pieces that were commissioned after disintegration of Yugoslavia by their newly formed governments. Looking at all these photographs combined, one could easily piece together a clear picture of the history of Balkan states.
I recently interviewed Marc for Bturn, to read the whole interview click here.
Top image: Podgaric, Croatia; monument designed by Dusan Dzamonja, 1967.
Bottom image: Berane, Montenegro; designed by Bogdan Bogdanovic , 1972-1977.
Both images – courtesy of Marc Schneider.
