Artist Name: Igor Schiller
Dates: June – July 2025
Born: 1996
Hometown: Opovo
Lives & Works:  Amsterdam
URL: www.igorschiller.com | Instagram: @igorschiller
Education:
2018-2021 – BA Photography, Royal Academy of Arts the Hague
2016-2018 – BA Photography, Academy of Arts Novi Sad

Bio/Statement:

Igor Schiller is the winner of the 2024 Dimitrije Bašičević Mangelos Award.

Igor Schiller is a Serbia-born, Amsterdam-based artist who graduated in photography from the Royal Academy of Art, The Hague, in 2021. The following year, he was nominated for the FOAM Paul Huf Award. In 2024, he received the Dimitrije Bašičević Mangelos Award, recognising him as Serbia’s best young visual artist. His work has been showcased at the International Film Festival Rotterdam, Unfair Amsterdam and Art Rotterdam, among others.

Rooted in the rich traditions of his Balkan upbringing, Schiller explores themes of cultural identity, memory, and how childhood shaped his worldview. Revisiting his early years through his family archive, he blends fictional and subjective elements to create elaborate cinematic sets, saturated with strangeness and gloom, yet contrasted with tenderness and warmth. He views toys, lullabies, games, and other remnants of childhood as historical artefacts that reflect the socio-political climate. By analysing their influence on children’s content, he explores how they perpetuate cultural legacies shaped by rigid systems. With his installations and films, Schiller constructs imaginary kingdoms populated by characters who serve as metaphors for his thoughts on identity, isolation, and belonging. Through humor, he creates a space for reflection, engaging with serious subjects through a lens of lightness and wit.

Support: Igor Schiller’s residency is made possible with support from the Trust for Mutual Understanding.