In his series Home Theater, Croatian-born, New York-based photographer Hrvoje Slovenc depicts real-life domestic interiors that double as sex rooms by practitioners of S&M acts. The tension between the relatable interiors—which at first glance appear as common home libraries, offices, bedrooms or dining rooms—and their unexpected use, provokes a jarring and intriguing dissonance that invites further contemplation. Indeed, by serving as a space to perform common daily rituals such as eating and working as well as a particular brand of sexual activity, Slovenc dilutes the borders segregating socially-sanctioned rituals from those that are often perceived as taboo. The name of the series likewise attests to the theatricality underlying domestic and sexual rituals.

A Master’s graduate from the Yale School of Art, Slovenc’s photographs have been exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago; the Museum of New Art, Detroit; the Bronx Museum of the Arts, New York; and the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Croatia, among others. He is past a recipient of the London Photography Award, the International Photography Award, the Golden Light Award, and Photography Now Award, among others. He is represented by Helac Fine Art, New York.