Omen

In the series Omen Goran Bertok is dealing with human body, his fragility, vulnerability, ephemerality. Bertok has directed and documented sadomasochistic rituals and acts of self-harm, using them as a methaphor
In early series, Bertok used black-and-white photography to examine sadomasochistic ritual and corporal injury. These serials are already thematically colored by a certain transgression, while the repertoire and props in the displayed rituals are borrowed from Christianity (the sufferings of the martyr)
Goran Bertok, Omen 3
Goran Bertok, Omen 4
Man on Bertok`s photograph is not beautiful nor superior; he is a prisoner of his desire. There are several prisoners, and when we look closely at them as at individual figures, we find out that they have moved even further away from the sado-masochistic typification and have become original creations. In the previous works, masks, for instance, reminded us of real sado-masochistic requisites. In this series a mask is a pile of chains covering the models head. Besides the aesthetic effect, a mask has also a psychological connotation. This is a rare example when bodies in the photos have their own faces. This time a mask does not hide, but reveals.
Goran Bertok, Omen 6
Goran Bertok, Omen 7
Goran Bertok, Omen 8
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Goran Bertok, Omen 14