Matea Kovač & Ana Maria Maravić

Kairos: On the Edge of the Opportune invites viewers to reflect not only on moments seized, but also on those missed, misread, or misunderstood.

Can we recognize the right moment as it arrives—or only in hindsight? In Greek mythology, Kairos is the god of the opportune moment: a fleeting sliver of time in which change becomes possible. Often imagined as a gateway to something positive, the concept also asks us to consider: what if the most crucial opportunities are not about creation, but about letting go?

This exhibition brings together two practices—drawing and sculpture, mythology and personal experience—in a shared meditation on the nature of timing, awareness, and transformation.

In her animated film Y, Matea Kovač explores the fragile thresholds of intimacy through the simplicity of a line: a line that once connected now divides. Her vision of Kairos is not triumphant, but sobering—a moment of clarity in which the necessity of ending becomes undeniable. Here, the opportune moment is an act of self-preservation, a quiet decision to withdraw in order to remain whole.

Kovač’s film Y received the Newcomer’s Award at the 2024 Animation Avantgarde competition at the Vienna Shorts Festival, alongside an artist residency at MuseumsQuartier Vienna.

Conversely, Ana Maria Maravić’s sculptural interpretations of Kairos depict the god with oversized feet—ready for swift movement—and faces full of mischief. Her figures embody Kairos not as a solemn force but a playful one, evoking how opportunities often disguise themselves as disruptions. In these works, timing becomes a game of recognition: moments that test our readiness, our instincts, and our courage to act—or to wait.

Author of the text: Kamogelo Walaza

Matea Kovač (1993, Kroatien)

schloss ihr Studium des Animationsfilms und der Neuen Medien an der Akademie der Schönen Künste in Zagreb ab. Ihr Einstieg in das Filmemachen ist geprägt von der Erkundung verschiedener Möglichkeiten, ihre eigenen Gefühle und Identitätserfahrungen zu interpretieren. Durch ihre Arbeit entfernt sie sich von der Konformität, indem sie ihre Gedanken als Mittel der Selbstfindung und Selbstbeobachtung physisch materialisiert.

Als Produktionsmitarbeiterin hat sie an der Realisierung zahlreicher Filme unterschiedlicher Genres und Formate mitgewirkt. Ihr künstlerischer Ansatz ist nicht auf einen bestimmten Stil, ein bestimmtes Thema oder ein bestimmtes Medium beschränkt, sie ist offen für die Erforschung verschiedener visueller Sprachen und Techniken.

Ana Maria Maravić (1995, Kroatien)

Maria Maravić ist Bildhauerin mit Fokus auf Medaillenherstellung und Kleinplastik. Im Rahmen der Residency wird Kovač zusammen mit Maravić die visuelle Sprache für ein Bilderbuch entwickeln, das dann in einen kurzen Animationsfilm umgewandelt werden soll. Ziel ist es dabei, die Schnittstelle zwischen Skulptur und Animation zu erforschen und beide Ausdrucksweisen künstlerisch zu verschmelzen

Matea Kovač (1993, Croatia)

Matea Kovač (b. 1993, Croatia) graduated in Animated Film and New Media from the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb. Her entry into the field of filmmaking is marked by an exploration of various ways to interpret her own emotions and experiences of identity. Through her work, she moves away from conformity, physically materializing her thoughts as a means of self-discovery and introspection.

She is the author of the animated film „Y“, which has been screened at over 90 international festivals and has received 12 film awards and special recognitions. As a production collaborator, she has contributed to the realization of numerous films across different genres and formats. Her artistic approach is not confined to a specific style, theme, or medium—rather, she remains open to exploring diverse visual languages and techniques.

Ana Maria Maravić (1995, Croatia)

 is a sculptor focusing on medal making and small-scale sculpture. During the residency, Kovač will collaborate with Maravić to develop the visual language for a picture book, which will then be transformed into a short animated film. The goal is to explore the interface between sculpture and animation and to artistically merge both forms of expression