The self(ie) interview: a simple concept copyrighted by GAY45 back in 2012. In this series, we identify emerging creatives and exciting people who we believe will be captivating to read about. We invite them to interview themselves and take a selfie while doing so. The self-interview with selfie was inspired by an empirical tool specifically for use in memory studies research. Our idea was developed to overcome some practical limitations of one-to-one interviews and address a new type of journalism. We ask our interviewees to interview themselves, without the intrusion of another person. The manner can be through storytelling, diary-keeping, questions, images, sound, or any other meaning of representation. We find it is interesting what our guests want to tell people about themselves avoiding intrusion by another person. Today we invite Luka Mahmuljin Udovičić, a Croatian artist, designer, and writer who recently graduated from the Design Academy Eindhoven.
hi
hi
so …. where are we right now
I am in a hotel on the Danube, sitting at a 70s desk
The room is carpeted, which is my worst nightmare as I am crazy allergic to dust mites. The carpet is deep blue with a layered star pattern which is quite neat. I suppose it also does a great job in masking all the dirt and dead skin from previous guests.
if a carpeted hotel room is our nightmare, what’s our daydream
My aspiration in life is to be happy and my daydream is having coffee and croissants with all my friends, somewhere in the sun, with soul and house music in the background. No one is hurting, it’s not too hot or too cold, everything feels as it was meant to be and the sunset lasts for three hours. Capitalism is no more.
which type of croissant is our favourite
plain with salted butter or a good ham and cheese one. or chocolate (if there are no pains au chocolat around). almond croissants are great as well, though.
what was the last thing we dreamt?
I can’t remember, or so I say…
what’s been keeping us awake?
the little things such as health insurance, trying to figure out how to make a living, housing crisis, inflation etc. Thinking about social media and how everything has gotten out of hand. How our brains are getting altered literally before our own eyes. I am scared of children growing up with iPads instead of teddy bears and often fantasise about Mars Attack(s). Technology is evolving faster than we can comprehend yet we find ourselves more stuck than ever. Not even stuck but going backwards, while technology drives us to a point of decay instead of aiding us in fostering a healthier coexistence, in a proactive symbiosis. A few nights ago, there was a mosquito in my room. After biting me three times already, I tried catching it, but it always escaped and disappeared.
So, I decided to use my body as a live bait by pretending to be asleep. 15 minutes later it tried getting more blood out of me and I killed him with my father’s shoe.
what are the three main things occupying our mind right now
making faširanci later today for the first time, how I cannot get the lighting to be perfect in this room to maximise both productivity and enjoyment, and if I should have another cup of coffee or not.
why are we doing this interview
I am doing this interview to commemorate a moment for myself and to present it to others in this semi-genuine totally non-artificial way. I hear a voice in my head whisper that I should talk more about my practice and ongoing projects instead of croissants and mosquitoes. So I listen to the voice.
so tell the readers what our practice is!
My practice is rooted in infinite attempts of trying to relate to my own selves by challenging everyday experiences and observations, establishing universal connectivity by doing so. Self-expression is the key component, and I am its submissive little lock. It is a practice which involves writing, doing and making god knows what in order to deepen self-understanding, and make sense of the world around me. I have a hard time processing thoughts, feelings, and emotions as they arise, so I use various forms of self-expression in order to see more clearly, accept vulnerability and face my own fears, desires, aspirations…
alrighty, we said it lightly! and what are these ongoing projects that the voice told us to speak more of?
In 2023 I graduated from the Design Academy Eindhoven with ‘STOP STARING AND HUG ME PLEASE! I AM CRAVING A CAPPUCCINO / Designing The Super-Faggot!!!!!!!! a.k.a. OPEN CALL FOR THE MASS DESTRUCTION OF CISHETEROPATRIARCHY’ a multimedia project focused on creating the ‘Super-Faggot,’ a persona developed to challenge anxiety and paranoia faced by queer people in heteronormative spaces, facing discrimination and harassment head-on. It contains research and its materialisation through written and audio material, visual identity development (both digital and physical), material experimentation (such as textile, metal, ceramic, leather) and live performance.
The project mirrors observers’ discomfort, insecurities, and fears rooted in misogyny while honouring marginalised LGBTQIA+ and femme individuals. You can read more about it on my website, everybodylovesluka.com.
Currently, I am working harder than hard on expanding the project in several lanes and it’s quite exciting! I cannot spoil it because it’s a multi-million dollar project still in the works, but trust and believe it’s going to be a major game-changer. Witness the rise of the Super-Faggot!!!
what about writing? what about our writing?
What about it?
why do we write?
I write to keep track of life as it unravels and happens around me: I write to provide space for observations and thoughts, to keep them from disappearing, and to keep myself from floating away. To make myself a living proof of my own existence. I write to read it later.
okay, go off. are there any big writing projects going on right now?
for sure. this is the first interview I have ever done, and I think it’s a wonderful start. I am writing every day and developing new collections of texts, poems, essays, etc. I’m about to hit the writer’s market HARD. I’m talking big time. I have been working on a book, a collection of texts and essays for more than two or three years now, and I’m going into another round of editing it. Always thinking, always writing, collecting, and noting down. Always applying and sending texts around: you never know when one might pop up!
Also, the main part of my website is a blog, which gets updated approximately once a week. Keep an eye out, that’s for sure.
what is our favourite accessory at the moment?
a tiny-car necklace I gifted to myself for passing my driver’s exam two weeks ago.
it’s a gold chain with silver stars and a red and black hot wheels car. The clasp is a shiny clump of rhinestones.
what is our favourite clothing item at the moment?
my aunt’s old MaxMara zip-up hoodie which she gave to my sister, who gave it to me. It’s brown with a zipper and some bronze dangly details.
recommend three song we have been listening to lately?
“Just Like U Said Said It Would B” by Sinead O’connor, “Never Ever” by All Saints, and “Sacrifice” by Frankie Knuckles. My honourable mentions are “Vjerujem ti sve” by Josipsa Lisac and “Nothing Really Matters” by Madonna.
what do we want the readers to take away from this interview?
Great song recommendations as well as an insight into a specific point in time of a person’s life: a glimpse inside of someone else’s head and a break from their own set of thoughts.
what do we want luka to take away from this interview?
I am placing this moment into a jar and putting it on my shelf. In a few years I will dust it off and shake it, see what happens.
what are we doing tomorrow?
tomorrow I will go to the market to look at shiny things, grab a pastry and some coffee.
I will have a call for a potential room in Berlin. I will unpack my things and put the suitcase away. Eat the leftover of today’s faširanci. Finish another application and have tea with my grandma. I will go to sleep and dream of something soft. Before waking up, again.
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