Petra Strahovnik: SCREAdoM

The central theme of this piece is the suffering of innocent victims of war, that are helpless and are not able to run or fight the attack. It focuses on the horror of the moment(s) of the traumatic event as well as the reverberations of it (PTSD) and its effects on several mental aspects of the victims life after the attack. An aspect of Performance Art is implemented in this piece as well. A clean operatic voice shifting to extreme vocal techniques known in the world of extreme Metal vocalists and keeping the same pitch is used to, on the microlevel, bring you into the short but extremely traumatic experience and stretch the seconds of the attack with the sounds of a torturous scream coming from a deep place of pain, horror and uncertainty.

 

Part 1

SCREAdoM

The piece SCREAdoM focuses on the suffering of innocent victims of war–women who have been raped. The lyrics are based on the testimony of victim number 87, given before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. The focus is on the experience of a traumatic event and its long-lasting psychological consequences, especially post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In my work, I combine elements of performance and extreme vocal techniques derived from the world of metal vocal aesthetics, while maintaining operatic projection and intonation. In doing so, I create a distinctly intense and physically perceptible sound space that dissects moments of attack and stretches them into a visceral sound experience–a scream that comes from the depths of pain, horror, and despair.

 

Part 2

The Fragile Art of Living Together, video installation

Slovenia: In–between

The video intertwines three conversations with distinguished Slovenian academics, each offering a distinct lens on the conditions of creative freedom–past and present. Through their experiences as artists, researchers, and cultural witnesses, they show that freedom is never abstract: it is shaped by institutions, expectations, private convictions, the courage to stand apart, and by how a society treats its minorities. A particular focus emerges around the position of women in creative sector–not as theory, but as lived reality. The work invites viewers to reflect on how history persists in the present, how creativity responds to pressure, and how freedom–social, artistic, personal–must be continually reexamined and defended. How do we learn to listen again? To others, to art, and to ourselves. Art may not change the world, but it preserves a space where truth has not yet become cynical–where freedom is measured not by volume, but by the fragile flow between us.

 

Part 3

UnScream

The Voiceless–The Starving Children in War Zones

This piece is an epilogue to SCREAdoM, which gave voice to the pain of women affected by sexual violence in times of war. UnScream turns our attention to another atrocity: the silent suffering of children facing starvation in conflict zones. At its heart is a gesture of solidarity.
The voices you will hear–screams–were donated by children, teenagers, and students from  across Europe. They offer their voices for those who can no longer scream, for those whose  hunger is met with silence. It is raw, immediate, and emotionally urgent. It was created in  response to the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza and other war-torn regions. Prompted by  the manmade nature of famine today, declared by the WHO and shaped by political choices,  and by attempts to silence critical voices such as UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese,  this work refuses to look away. It is both a lament and a protest. A sonic plea. A reminder that  we, as a global society, are failing our most vulnerable. With deep gratitude to all who lent  their voices to speak for the voiceless.

(Petra Strahovnik)