Introducing
Tereza Crvenković
I’m a multidisciplinary artist
who works across literary writing, storytelling, digital and photographic media, dance, performance and cross-cultural genres.
A 2-x kidney transplant recipient (1992 & 2017) and stroke survivor (2009), my creative work explores the complexities and contradictions of living with chronic renal failure from childhood onwards. My objective is to shine a light on the personal, silent narratives of the patient/survivor and the disabled, otherwise concealed from public view.
My creative work is driven by the belief in the transformative potential of the deeply personal to generate discourse and effect socio-cultural and political change. For this reason, my body is central to my work.
Life narratives are etched on our bodies and embedded in our bodies. As the primary point of contact with the world, our limbs, bones, muscles, nerves and tissues are a doorway into an endless repository of life stories, unique to each one of us. Sensory and psycho-emotional experiencing provide key perspectives.
My creative process is informed by phenomenology, Gestalt therapy, the felt sense, yogic philosophy, embodiment theories, and the Croatian/Bosnian Diasporic experience.
As a second generation Australian of Croatian/Bosnian ancestry, I was a dancer, vocalist and dance instructor with Koleda Croatian Folkloric Ensemble Sydney for over 40 years. My experience with the ensemble includes 100s of community-based performances Australia-wide, 3 tours of Croatia and Bosnia Hercegovina, regular performances at the Sydney Opera House, and 2 studio albums.
I hold an MPhil in Performance Studies (USYD), an MA in Theatre Studies (UNSW), a BA Hons in English Literature (USYD) and Grad Dip in Creative Writing (USYD). In a bid to deepen my understanding of Croatian folk culture in the diaspora, I attended Zagreb University on a 6-month scholarship to study carnival traditions.
I’m a Certified Focusing Professional with the International Focusing Institute, NY, and a trained Yoga teacher. My literary work has appeared in Hektoen International, Spineless Wonders and Kaleidoscope.
My Creative Practice
Transplantation, chronic illness and disability narratives are big. In fact, they’re epic. They have their own life and rhythm, demand to be told and to be heard.
Organ transplantation is the ultimate gift of life, yet beneath the surface, living with a life-saving transplanted organ is complex.
We form profound, life-long relationships with our donors - both living and deceased; take a daily toxic cocktail of anti-rejection drugs to stay alive; endure ongoing, often serious health challenges as well as the onset of other debilitating chronic illnesses; face episodic hospitalisations and surgeries; juggle an ever-increasing number of medical appointments.
But we also live full, rich lives, experience deep gratitude, joy and love.
Ultimately, my creative work draws on the breadth of the contradictory, multifaceted aspects of my life as an organ transplant recipient spanning three decades.