About the Photographer
Slovenc, Hrvoje
Croatian, b. 1976
In the series Partners in Crime, Hrvoje Slovenc creates mannered portraits of same sex couples who have been partnered for an average of eighteen years. Each scene is staged to mimic late nineteenth-century wedding portraiture. Slovenc arranges his couples in their homes as if they were appearing on their wedding day, something that remains a legal impossibility in this country. “I am trying to capture the public face that society mandates for same-sex couples," Slovenc explains, "The couples appear to be both physically and emotionally disconnected because in many ways, both subtle and overt, that is how they are told they should behave." The physical distance and body language of each couple suggests the emotional toll same sex couples endure when dealing with outside scrutiny, as well as the legal distance imposed on their relationships.
Slovenc is a native of Croatia currently residing in the United States. He holds an MS in biochemistry from the University of Zagreb (2000), a BA in photography from the City College of New York (2006), and an MFA in photography from Yale (2010).
http://hrvojeslovenc.com/