My love of painting
was born amidst the green hills of Istria, a Croatian peninsula just across the bay from Venice, where I grew up in a dynamic community of artists and sculptors. I started painting at an early age, guided by one of Croatia’s great painters, Nikola Reiser. A poetic artist and sensitive teacher, he taught me to seek my unique expression and remain true to it.
In my painting, I strive to honor life's fleeting moments and capture their dynamic expression. Whether painting the ethereal realm of a Tibetan lama dance or the organic beauty of ripe pears on a windowsill, I aim to unveil the sublime within the ordinary, where natural joy exists and is accessible to all. Through careful observation the essence of objects or people unveils itself and I arrive at the essence and vibrancy I aim to portray. The generally bold use of color and fluid brushwork impart a dynamic energy and the work elicits a sense of joy, community, and the simple pleasures of life. The paintings capture not just the vivid hues of the exterior world but also the rich, variegated spectrum of human interaction. The complex compositions invite the viewer's eye to meander throughout the canvas, discovering new details and narratives within the bustling crowd or intricate patterns in still lifes, landscapes and interiors. Oil on canvas and pastel on paper are my chosen mediums. I find deep satisfaction in the movement of pigment on paper or canvas, capturing light and color, in order to express the essence of a moment.
My art has served as a means to discover order amid chaos, and a profound conduit to the essence of life. The paintings pay homage to my Croatian roots and America, the country that’s been my home for over 40 years.
Bonnard, Cezanne, Chagall, Sorolla, Vermeer, Van Gogh, Artemisia Gentileschi, and Mary Cassatt are the artists who inspire me, as well as do my beloved teachers Nikola Reiser, Max Ginsburg and Sharon Sprung.