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Ziga Koritnik

Ziga Koritnik is multi-practical photographer, following and photographing musicians for more than 35 years.

About Me

by Mats Gustafsson, April 2017, Nickelsdorf (text for book Cloud Arrangers)

Žiga NOW!

The instant now. The moment. We are all seeking it. Looking for it. Longing for it. Doing all kinds of research to get it. To capture it. To “get it”. Research and re-search. Whether it is about sounds, texts, theatre, dance or images -moving ones or stills - when we find it, we know it! We realize it only the millimoment after it has happened. We can never foresee it. We cannot plan for it to happen. But when we find it… we know that what we are doing is working. That it all makes sense. That goes without saying. With Improvised Music you try to empty yourself, try to disconnect your intellect -if you have any that is- and just go with the flow… play – interact – listen … And BAM! There it is! It all connects! The moment is the hub. Everything comes together: dynamics, structure, density, phrasing, colors and detail. It is a beautiful moment. For all creative artists it is maybe about the same thing? The way I see it, it is. The best writers can do that. They can make you just go with the flow without thinking. You are nailed to the moment. It is a state of mind more than anything else. Paul Auster, Gunnar Ekelöf and Robert Creeley being three of my all-time favorite capturers of the moment. Dance is another art form where the moment has to be there in order to make you attentive and aware. During some of the most amazing moments of watching dance I stopped breathing. I literally really had to fight to get oxygen into my lungs, remembering how to breathe. Watching Pina Bausch´s choreography of Igor Stravinsky’s “Rite of the Spring” was like that. I watched it three times in a week. And every time it almost killed me! My first meeting with Butoh maestro Kazuo Ohno was another one of those truly life changing moments. We met on- stage during a free improvisation that involved Peter Kowald, Ohno and myself in Wuppertal during the Pina Bausch festival. An extremely interactive and attentive sharing of the moment. Time just stopped; the moment stayed with us for a long time. That is how I felt it. The moment just stayed there in the room with us and with the people watching and hearing it. You could touch it. It is all about the moment. It has to be. So, bear with me. I want to take the chance to shine a spotlight at the moment. The moment as a catalyst for artistic creativity. Of course, we know what a beautiful and creative capturer of moments the subject of this essay is, so we can come back to that a bit later. The instant now. The moment. How I love it. How I adore it. But you have to fight for it. It doesn’t appear without effort. If you are not aware… it passes by and it is gone. It can never be caught again, that particular moment. We have to take care of them, the moments. As an improvising musician, you capture it sometimes on stage. And a certain kind of magic is exposed and revealed. Especially within the so-called free improvised music. When nothing is decided beforehand, and everything can happen. Sometimes nothing happens. No matter how hard you look and try for that moment. The harder you look, the harder it gets. You need to just BE there. And trust it to appear. Meaning trusting the people you interact with. And it will appear, the moment. BANG! Some of the best improvisers have that special gift, just like Žiga Koritnik, to be able to capture the moment and make something more out of it. Derek Bailey, Ken Vandermark, Barry Guy, Paul Lovens, Jim O´ Rourke, Günter Christmann, Raymond Strid and a few others…

Another kind of magic can appear when you play for a very small audience. Like the marathon sessions of hardcore free jazz blowouts I did early on with my comrade Kjell Nordeson – in our teens - in our hometown Umeå, on the southern border to Sapmi, Lapland, in northern Sweden. We only had our great friend, Edward Jarvis, the painter, listening to our high-energy outbursts. Hour long flows of energy and extreme density. How important those sessions were! And how much in-the-moment we were when we did the research. When we were really exploring the shit. And the magic that appears when you play with someone even without an audience, when something just happens without warning. Such as that time when I was warming up backstage at the club Paradiso in Amsterdam before a concert with the kickassfreepunkunit The EX. Closing my eyes and concentrating on controlling some percussive sax techniques. In walks the Ethiopian legend Getatchew Mekurya with his tenor sax. He closes the door behind him, sits down opposite me, looks into my eyes and just starts playing. Me making an intense flow of percussive sounds, Getatchew playing some of his ancient beautiful melodies. No other people listening, time disappearing- the moment. All there. I have no idea how long we played. Suddenly, it was over. We smiled, stood up, bowed to each other and Getatchew left the room. I sat down, feeling the moment still present in the room, enjoying it tremendously. Breathing and trying to understand what actually just has happened.

And yes… it HAS to take time. The artistic research is a lifelong process. You will never be done with it. You NEED to continue with it. You NEED to be willing to continuously take new risks and to learn to love the mistakes you make, then deal with them. It’s the only way. It is. And you need to find the people to interact with. People that are willing to do the same research you do, the similar mistakes. Sometimes it just works, sometimes you have to really fight for it. Both alternatives are good. And yes, this is how it works. With some people, it just clicks. Right away. What a privilege! What a gift!

The first meeting with Žiga Koritnik was like that. Big time! The person Žiga. The artist Žiga. It clicked. And he clicked. From the first photo shoot in the end of last century with AALY Trio and Ken Vandermark in Ljubljana via, I guess, hundreds of concerts all around Europe, to photo shoots for various groups I have been active in and also photo sessions for articles and special projects. We joined forces right away, understanding what it was all about. The moment, the search, the sharing. When I married the love of my life, Bärbel, in Austria in 2010, Žiga was documenting the wedding and the insane party the days after in Nickelsdorf [(check the photo of Barry Guy – on page 116 - trying the best grappa ever produced: Marolo – Grappa Dedicata al Padre from the Distillery of Santa Teresia in Alba)- OUT lp, Vid] like he always does. Invisible, but always there. Capturing every moment. With beauty. Žiga, the artist. Žiga, the person. He means a hell of a lot to me. I can use many superlatives about him and his photography. But it’s best to always leave that out and let the photos speak for themselves. I think that is pretty obvious. When you actually share those moments. You know it, you can feel it. Thanks to artists like Žiga we have a chance to remember those crucial moments that are valid to us- in our music, in our art, in our life. Because he captured them. He was there. And his sense of timing is so unbelievably musical. Pure music, that I can say. Music in black and white. Black and white music. I love the details, the compositions, the form, the density, the flow. the energy. It is all there. Inside the images. And yes, I can also put it very simply: Žiga is definitely the most amazing, sensitive and creative photographer alive when it comes to capturing the moment of MUSIC. In MUSIC- when it is done. Live. Alive. When it is being created. When the instant NOW appears. BANG! Wam bam BANG – CLICK! CLICK!

Mats Gustafsson, April 2017, Nickelsdorf ( text for book Cloud Arrangers)

Selected solo shows:

2021 Faculty of Social Sciences, Ljubljana, Slovenija 2019 Forli Open Music Festival, ex Chiesa san Giacomo, Forli, Italy 2019 Cankar Centre, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2017 Cankar centre, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2017 Black Box / Penang House Of Music, Malaysia 2017 Cerkno Museum, Cerkno, Slovenia 2016 Schillerstrasse 106, Berlin, Germany 2016 Casa Lai, Gavoi, Sardegna, Italy 2015 Isola Delle Storie, Gavoi, Sardegna, Italy 2015 Sa Domo’e Mazzone, Gavoi, Sardegna, Italy 2014 Museum St.Johann in Tirol, Austria 2014 Sa Domo ‘e Mazzone, Gavoi, Sardegna, Italy 2014 Klub Jedro, Medvode, Slovenia 2013 Udine, Italy 2013 Regional museum Maribor, Slovenia 2013 Kranj, Slovenia 2012 Hong Kong, China 2012 Zhuhai, China 2012 Krakovski nasip, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2012 Festival Kanal, Lake Bohinj, Slovenia 2012 Centar savremene umjetnosti, Podgorica, Montenegro 2011 Penang jazz festival / Penang island / Malaysia 2011 Jakopicevo sprehajalisce / Park Tivoli, Ljubljana / Slovenia 2011 City Gallery, Nova Gorica / Slovenia 2011 Gallery Salsaverde, Izola / Slovenia 2011 Congress and cultural house Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana / Slovenia 2011 Gallery Jakopicevo sprehajalisce / Park Tivoli, Ljubljana / Slovenia 2011 Gallery Salsaverde, Izola / Slovenia 2011 Congress and cultural centre Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana / Slovenia 2011 City Gallery Nova Gorica / Slovenia 2010 Gallery Sokolski dom, Skofja Loka / Slovenia 2009 Su Palatu, Museum of photography, Vilanova Monteleone / Sardegna -Italy 2009 Galerija Fotografija, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2009 Dom Jozeta Azmana, Bohinjska Bistrica, Slovenia 2009 Ranč Mrcina, Studor, Bohinj, Slovenia 2009 Knjižnica Otona Zupancica, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2008 Jazzbina, Pula, Croatia 2007 N.O. Jazz festival, Zagreb, Croatia 2007 Casa Lai, Gavoi, Sardegna, Italy 2006 Sava Center, Belgrade, Serbia 2005 Delavski dom, Hrastnik, Slovenia 2005 Gallery KUD France Preseren, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2005 Ring Ring festival, Belgrade, Serbia 2005 Kulturhaus, Dresden, Germany 2003 BOF, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2003 Jazz festival Izzven, Maribor, Slovenia 2003 Jazz festival Saalfelden , Austria 2003 Pavel Haus, Laafeld, Austria 2002 Pri Skofu, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2002 Galerija Plocnik, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2002 Stockwerk, Graz, Austria 2002 Kavehaz, New York, U.S.A. 2001 City museum Skopje, Macedonia 2000 Gallery Meduza, Koper, Slovenia 2000 Congress and cultural centre Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana, Slovenia 1999 Museum Loka, Skofja loka, Slovenia 1999 Gallery Kud France Preseren, Ljubljana, Slovenia 1999 Gallery Kibela, Maribor, Slovenia 1998 Technical university, Dresden, Germany 1998 City Library, Ludwigshafen, Germany 1998 Slovenian film fund, Ljubljana, Slovenia 1998 Likovni salon, Celje, Slovenija 1998 Gallery Avla NLB, Slovenia 1996 Jazz Festival Saalfelden, Austria 1996 Ganglova gallery, Metlika, Slovenia 1995 Photo gallery Stolp, Maribor, Slovenia 1993 Cultural and congress centre Cankarjev Dom, Ljubljana, Slovenia 1991 Galery Kud France Preseren, Ljubljana, Slovenia 1990 Gallery Lerota, Ljubljana, Slovenia

Selected Group shows:

2021 Ai Confini Tra Sardegna E Jazz, Sant’Anna Aressi, Sardinia / Italy 2021 Sant’Antioco, Sardinia / Italy 2020 Artacts jazz festival, St.Johann in Tirol / Austria 2020 BIFoto, mednarodni fotografski festival, Mogoro, Sardiniia / Italy 2018: Zlatko Kaucic: 40 years of playing – group exhibition at City Library, Kranj, Slovenia 2018 “Intro”, z Fakulteta za Arhitekturo, Nabrežje Ljubljanice, Ljubljana, Slovenija 2018 Galerija Rika Debenjaka, Kanal ob Soči, Slovenija 2017 Gateshead Jazz Festival, Gateshead, England 2017 “Obala Idej”, z Fakulteta za Arhitekturo, Nabrežje Ljubljanice, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2016 “Gremo naprej!” Slovenska fotografija 1990 -2015, Mestna Galerija, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2016 Caffe Savoia, Festival Di Letterature Applicate, Cagliari, Sardinia 2016 Jakopičevo sprehajališče / Park Tivoli, Ljubljana / Slovenia 2015 Jazzclub Mahogany Hall, Edam, Holland 2015 Bimhuis, Amsterdam, Holland 2015 One water, one planet; City Museum / Park Tivoli, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2013 “This is our music”, Cultural and congress centre Cankarjev Dom, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2013 Jazzinec, Czech republic 2011 The Powerhouse Arena / New York Photo festival / NYC, U.S.A. 2010 Photo Museum Su Palatu, Villanova Monteleone / Sardinia / Italy 2010 Gallery Kresija, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2009 Galerie Remixx, Graz, Austria 2006 Vision jazz festival, Angel Orensanz Center, New York, U.S.A. 2006 Musica sulle bocche, Sardegna, Italy 2005 OVSE conference, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2005 Musica sulle bocche, Sardegna, Italy 2005 Vision Art center, European cultural capital, Cork, Ireland 2005 Galleries Lafayette, Nice, France 2004 European comission, Strasbourg, France 2004 European parlament, Brussels, Belgium 2004 Gallery Kibela, Maribor, Slovenia 2004 Congress and cultural centre Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2003 TV Slovenia, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2003 Jazz festival Cerkno, Slovenia 2003 Salon sodobne Slovenske fotografije, GR, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2002 Galerija Zula, Ljubljana, Slovenia 2002 Congress and cultural centre Cankarjev dom, Ljubljana, Slovenia 1998 Galerija Kapelica, Ljubljana, Slovenia 1996 Gallery KUD France Preseren, Ljubljana, Slovenia 1994 DruStvo oblikovalcev Slovenije, MGLC, Ljubljana, Slovenia 1993 Gallery Kud France Preseren, Ljubljana, Slovenia 1993 Moderna galerija, Rijeka, Croatia 1993 Galerija SKUC, Ljubljana, Slovenia 1991 Olympus, Tokio, Japan

My pictures on CD’s and LP’s:

2021 Günter “Baby” Sommer & Fabrizio Puglisi, “Elements”, AUT Records 2020 Matija Krečič, “Cut”, ZKP RTV Slovenija 2020 Dirar Kalash, “Of Quietude”, Discus 2019 Angles 9, “Today is better than tomorrow”, Underflow Records 2019 Momentum 4: Consequent Duos 2015>2019, Audiographic Records 2019 Entr’act “Soigne ta droite”, Audiographic Records 2019 Trance Map+, Evan Parker / Matthew Wright, Intakt Records, 2019 2018 Punkt.Vrt.Plastik, (Kaja Draksler, Petter Eldh, Christian Lillinger), Intakt Records 2017 Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, Chris Corsano, Daniel Levin‎–Spinning Jenny, Trost Records 2016 Mats Gustafsson & Friends, MG 50 Peace & Fire, Trost Records 2016 Steve Swell Quintet, Soul Travelers, Rogue Art 2016 Evan Parker / Alexander Hawkins, Leaps in Leicester, Clean Feed 2015 Nate Wooley “ (Dance to) The Early Music, Trem Azul 2015 The Thing “Shake”, The Thing Records / TROST 2015 Guy Vandermark “Occasional Poems”, Not Two Records 2015 Evan Parker’s Sant’Anna Arresi Quintet “Fillu ‘e Ferru” 2014 Jason Adasiewicz’s Sun Rooms “From The Region”, Dellmark Records, ZDA 2014 Whammies Play music of Steve Lacy , Driff Records, ZDA 2013 Harris Eisenstadt, Clean feed 2012 Long Story Short; Curated by Peter Broetzmann; Trost 2011 Brina “Slecena Koza”; Drugod 2011 Tarfala Trio, SYZYGY; No Business Records 2011 Sonore trio, Cafe Oto; Trost 2011 Bassdrumbone / The other parade, Clean Feed 2010 Peter Brötzmann’s Chicago Tentet 1 / “3 nights in Oslo”, Smalltown Superjazz 2010 Powerhouse Sound ‎”Overlap”; Laurence Family Records 2010 Swedish Azz “Azz Appeal”; NotTwo Records 2010 Vasko Atanasovski 2010 Jure Pukl, “EARchitecture”, Sessionwork Records, 2010 2009 Peter Brötzmann’s Chicago Tentet ,“Chicago Tentet at Molde /10 years”, Okka Disk 2007 Dennis González “Dance of soothsayer’s tongue”, Clean feed, 2007 2007 Sonos de Gavoi; Associazione Tumbarinos de Gavoi, Sardinia, Italy 2006 Zlatko Kaucic: Pav; Splasch Records, Italy 2006 Toni Kitanovski & Cherkezi Orchestra, “Borderlands”, Enja Records, Germany 2006 Bossa De Nova, Slovenia 2006 Igor Lunder, Slovenia 2006 Minka, Slovenia 2006 Coronae; Matija Krecic, Slovenia 2006 Zlatko Kaucic, Zlati coln 2; Splasch records, Italy 2005 Boris Cavazza Quartet, 11 korakov, Goga Musica, Slovenia 2005 Mateja Blaznik, Uspavanka za vagabunde, Slovenia 2004 Fake Orchestra, Fake World, Goga Musica, Slovenia 2004 Igor Lunder Sekstet, Slovenia 2004 »Izpovedi porno dive«-glasba iz predstave Patty Diphusa, Familija, Slovenia 2003 James Chance , »Irresistible impulse«, Tyger Style Records, U.S.A 2002 »Zlati coln« , Zlatko Kaucic, Splasch records, Italy 2002 »The art of walking«, Ales Hadalin, Uros Rojko, En-Knap dance, Vitrum, Slovenia 2001 Toni Kitanovski-Zoran Madjirov »Duet«, SJF Records, Makcedonia 2001 Golden years of the Soviet New Jazz, Volume 1, Leo records, Great Britain 2000 Ned Rothenberg “Ghost stories”, Tzadik, U.S.A. 2000 Bratko Bibic & The Medleys, Staritete in novitete, Slovenia 2000 Melita Osojnik, Zar ptica – Nika, Slovenia 1999 Vyacheslav Guyvoronsky/Evelin Petrova – “Chonyi together”- Leo Records, Great Britain 1998 Acordian tribe (Guy Klucevsek, Bratko Bibič, Otto Lechner,…) – Intuition Music 1998 Folkestra, Slovenia 1998 Lindsay Cooper & Charles Gray » Pia Mater« – Resurgance, Great Britain 1998 Ken Hyder/Dave Brooks/Maggie Nicols/ »In the stone« – Impetus Records 1998 Bratko Bibic & The Madleys, Slovenia

Personal Books:

2019 Cloud Arrangers, Ziga Koritnik; Society PEGA, Slovenia 2009 Jezero / The Lake, Ziga Koritnik; Klopotec, Slovenia 2009 Ziga Koritnik, Un punto di luce, Archivi del sud, Alghero, Sardinija / Italy 1996 Jazzy-ga, Ziga Koritnik; selfpublished

Theater photographer:

Slovensko Mladinsko gledalisce, Gledalisce Ane Monro, Drama, Lutkovno gledalisce Ljubljana, .......

Published photographies in magazines and newspapers:

Jazzthetik, Germany Jazz Podium, Germany The New York Times, USA, Jazznin, Japan Santa Fe New Mexican, USA Il Manifesto, Italy Mladina, Delo, Dnevnik, M'ZIN, Likovne besede, Revija GM, Muska, Fotobilten, ARS Vivendi, Slovenija Opscene, Holland Neue Zeitschrift fur Musik, Germany Ballett Internationale, Germany Time Out, Great Britain Jazz Times, USA European Design Annual 1998 Signal To Noise, USA Jazziz, USA Village voice, USA All about Jazz, Italy, USA Prize winners of Olympus 70th Anniversary International Photo contest, Japan