Birds of Paradise
©EP2026
These artworks are part of the ‘Birds of Paradise’ series, which Slovenian photographer Vanja Bućan created during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her experience of lockdown triggered contemplations of the social constructs surrounding gender and the limitations women face, together with the issue of unpaid domestic labour carried out by women and girls. Although birds are associated with an idyllic ‘paradise’, they are confined by societal expectations – much in the way that women’s roles are shaped by patriarchal norms.
These works showcase Bućan’s distinctive artistic approach, which involves the manipulation of her own photographs into collages to create staged compositions that explore complex themes. She constructed these collages by photographing her subjects multiple times and in different settings, and then organising the composition into two parts: one showing women floating in fictional settings of a domestic nature, and another focusing on women’s hands performing housework. Bućan’s work is a deconstructive exploration of the female domestic experience on two levels. On the one hand, she represents women as exotic figures, ‘birds of paradise’, hinting to the freedom that societal norms and patriarchy often deny to women. At the same time, she also represents them as workers, reduced to anonymous hands performing routine tasks, a reference to women’s traditional domestic duties and the overlooked value of their domestic labour.
Ultimately, Bućan’s ‘Birds of Paradise’ series offers a subtle yet powerful social commentary on gendered expectations, hinting at the oppressive relationship between women and housework through a mixture of humour and social critique. The series builds on the artistic tradition of feminist art since the late 1960s, which challenges traditional gender roles, and is a reflection on the limitations of social expectations. Through her imaginative and playful approach, Bućan creates a space for envisaging – and perhaps manifesting – alternative realities where women can break free from prescribed roles and gain complete agency over their lives.
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Slovenia
Birds of Paradise
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2017
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2019
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Value of culture
(…) the intrinsic value of culture and of artistic expression should always be preserved and promoted and that artistic creation is at the heart of cooperation projects. European Parliament legislative resolution of 28 March 2019 on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the Creative Europe programme (2021 to 2027) and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1295/2013 (COM(2018)0366 – C8 0237/2018 – 2018/0190(COD))
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2020
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2021
Acquisition programme of works of art from Germany, Poland, Spain and Sweden following the Bureau decision from 25 November 2019
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2022
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Acquisition programme of works of art from Czechia, Italy, Malta and Slovakia following the Bureau decision from 25 November 2019
Roberta Metsola
Roberta Metsola serves as President of the European Parliament since January 2022
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2023
Croatia joins the euro area
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Acquisition programme of works of art from Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia and Finland following the Bureau decision from 25 November 2019
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2025
Acquisition programme of works of art from Denmark, Latvia and Slovenia following the Bureau decision from 25 November 2019