On Tuesday, October 14, the IUS Visual Arts and Visual Communications Design (VACD) study program hosted a guest lecture titled “Performance Art, Sound and Moving Image” as part of the Design Studio I course taught by Asst. Prof. Dr. Emir Hambo.
The guest speaker, Dr. Maja Zećo, is an interdisciplinary artist whose work spans performance art, sound, and moving image. An alumna of the VACD program and former Senior Assistant at IUS, Dr. Zećo is currently a Lecturer and Postdoctoral Research Assistant at Gray’s School of Art, Robert Gordon University (UK).
Through her research-driven artistic practice, Dr. Zećo explores themes of identity, decoloniality, and Balkan futurisms, often using the body and sensory experience as tools for critical reflection. Her performative acts - such as diving into water to evoke memory, experimenting with sensory deprivation, and testing physical endurance - push the boundaries between art, research, and lived experience.
Dr. Zećo completed her practice-based PhD in 2019 and has presented her work internationally, with exhibitions and performances held in Melbourne, London, Zurich, Zagreb, and Sarajevo. Born in Sarajevo and now based in Scotland, she continues to build bridges between cultures through her art and scholarship.
The lecture provided IUS students with an inspiring opportunity to engage in critical dialogue and artistic reflection, encouraging them to consider how art can become a powerful medium for research, activism, and storytelling.
