Emília Rigová (Bari Raklori) explores in her work social stereotypes, politics of the body and gender from the starting points of postfeminism and institutional critique. In her recent work, she particularly explores historical constructions of Roma identity (romipen) and its thematization of loss.
She is interested in the disappearance or, on the contrary, the colonization of the Roma body in the history of European culture and in Slovakia. In 2012 she created her own alter ego BARI RAKLORI, which represents the interconnection of the
majority and minority worlds.
Through multimedia artworks, she raises questions about the (in)visibility of Roma culture, its imprints in society as well as its future. Emília Rigová is the laureate of prestigious awards such as the Oskar Čepan Award, the Museum of Roma Culture
Award and the Tatra Bank Foundation Award.
Except being a visual artist and performer Emília also works on the academic field as an associate professor at the Academy of Arts in Banská Bystrica.
Artist‘s statement
Ultimately, it is the reader who gives the actual meaning to a given text and, hopefully, succeeds in the detection of rather implicit, or sometimes even apparent allusions to the everyday reality— too often disregarded—of our mutual social distance. My art can be considered to be this sort of Barthes’s text, too. Just as we can unravel an art piece layer by layer, we can set off on a journey to discover the identity of each and every one of us. I am Emília, I am Bari, I am a woman, I am a Romani, I am a Slovak, I am a European and I am even more. All these aspects of my identity extend with their markings into my work.” Our world is not one-dimensional—it has multiple dimensions just like every one of us.
Black and white together would only create gray.
The successful interpretation of an artwork, even if is brief, challenges the preconceived ideas of the one-dimensionality of the world.Its mission is to confront those ideas about the world that tend to claim their incontestable truth and universal validity. In the quest for authenticity, I draw on my own personal experience when creating my artworks. I process the experience visually, deconstruct it, then reconstruct and recreate it again.
Eventually, my own creation methods become the engines of my own transformation. I am my own life project–deconstructed and reconstructed again in the never-ending cycle. Artists create something artificial through their work.
Something that can, however, subsequently become even more real than the actual reality. Art is like a myth–neither truthful nor deceitful–and its perception and interpretation depends only
on our perspective.
Artist‘s statement in Romanes
Akor, sar manuš genel murš/džuvľi, avel leske pre goďi čino či buter, abo prinďarďi sakoďiveseskeri, no varekana na dikhľi realita andro dživipen, the amaro than maškar o manuša. Miro artos hin tiš ajse barthesovska lava. Avka sar andro umelecka buťa čhivas tele jekh šupka – lupa pal aver, avka amen korkore šaj phundravas amari voďi, te prindžaras amari identita. Vičinen man Bári Rakľóri.* Som e Emília, som Bári, som džuvľi, som Romňi, som Slovenka, som Evropanka the som mek buter. Savore ala lava hine miri identita the mukhen andre miri buťi o učhaj. Sako jekh avri thodo artos nane kisno kim les na dikhle aver manuša – ča akor sar e buťi dikhen avre jakha, ačhol olestar e realita. E luma nane sar šablona, hin la but dimenziji avka sar the le manušen.
Kaľi the parňi farba jekhetans keren ča šivo farba.
Te dikhas lačhi umelecko buťi – šukar umelecko artos, bisteras čeporo pre oda, hoj e luma hiňi ajsi, sar amenge vareko phenel. Umelecko prezentacija šaj sikhavel aver luma, šaj amenge phundravel o jakha, u oda perel tiš pre mande. Andre miri buťi (kamav te jel autenticko) sikhavav so predžiďiľom. Pre mire buťa dikhav, paľis len phagerav the kerav pale. Pro agor man mire autorske metodi ľidžan dži kije transformacija.
Me korkori som mire dživipneskero projektos – phagerďi, mosarďi u paľis nevi. Kada džal pale the pale u o agor nane ňikhaj te dikhel. O umelca keren umelecka arti, save pen paľis andro manušengere jakha šaj ačhen realna, avka sar čače. O artos hin sar puraňi paramisi – nane andre čačipen u nane andre chochavipen – sar les dikhas, abo sar les interpretinas oda džal avri amara voďatar.
*. E Bári Rakľori hin dujto nav the dujto džuvľi andre Emília Rigová. Hin oda duj romane lava. Bári Rakľori hin o simbolis sar pes del te dživel avre manušenca, sar šaj jekh avrestar Rom -gadžo las oda, so hin predal amende lačho. Sar šaj keras jekhetanes buťi, the oda kerel e Emília Rigová avka, hoj dikhel pre soduj seri.