Ideas

ARTIST STATEMENT

Humble search for a universal language that would pacify seemingly opposing religions, cultures and languages is my credo. Noticing similarities in suposedly antagonistic barriers and outgrowing them with perpetual creation of new language is my life-long mission.

By using several seemingly different languages and styles of lettering, I tend to erase the differences and create universal artistic code – as glossolalia in music – something that is substantially liberated from cultural burden of language itself.

My ancestry and development are a true melting pot: adopting bits and pieces of three religious traditions, it carved my decision to pacify them by creation. I wasn’t aware that leaving Tuzla would initiate a trace of its cultural spirit everywhere I went. I stumbled upon it’s symbols everywhere, both in Islamic and Christian cultures.

Relations between time, space and places where I was studying and working are my major themes. Making memorabilia from vicariously experiencing cities through their written or visual history and my direct experience is my unceasing field of research.

Constant endeavor to keep the thread of continuity of life, and discontinuity of places I was living is my path. It involves discovery of language within a language: through reading, observing and manually transcribing words and omens into symbols. Tactile way of discovering language is also my motivation for education in calligraphy, illustration and artist’s books. Exploring the boundaries of different language codes and symbols is an exciting and never-ending process.