RADENKO MILAK
THE 21st CENTURY

Curator / Kurátor: Max Dax
Vernissage / Megnyitó: 8 October 2025, 6 PM
On view / Megtekinthető: 9 October – 29 November 2025

Ani Molnar Gallery in Budapest proudly presents a solo exhibition of new and recent paintings by renowned Bosnian artist Radenko Milak, curated by German editor and curator Max Dax.
So far, the 21st century has been a rollercoaster of politics and culture. Over the past three decades, Milak has built a reputation as a prolific observer and chronicler of our turbulent, often violent times. He is much like his predecessor, Francisco de Goya, especially with regard to his haunting series of etchings, "Desastres de la Guerra" (1810–1814), which depict the cruelties of war during the French occupation of Spain. Goya and Milak indeed have much in common. Goya had to imagine the violent war scenes he witnessed or heard about from others because he didn't have a camera. Milak, however, draws from iconic images, mostly photographs that he and Max Dax found online or on social media.
Many of these photographs have instantly become part of the fabric of our perception of the world: Notre Dame burning. Silhouettes of B-3 stealth bombers and Raptor jets heading toward Iran. The burning Cybertruck in Las Vegas. We all know these images by heart. They became part of our collective subconscious overnight. Radenko Milak explores this phenomenon. How will we remember our times? Do these signs of the times have prophetic or apocalyptic significance? What happens when you "translate" a photograph into a painting? Milak's watercolor paintings are limited to a palette of grayscale black and white. However, within these limitations, he elevates his work to a level of abstraction that does not contradict the photorealistic illusion of his paintings.