Zeljka Paic is an artist based in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Her work is a contradiction of organized, geometric cityscapes and swirling, chaotic prints of naturalism. She has garnered multiple accolades including the award for best printmaking at the University of Banja Luka.

Her work has been exhibited as far and wide as New York and Amsterdam. She was featured in The Guardian’s Future of Art in Pictures article and picked as one of the top artists by Art Aesthetics Magazine for The Other Art Fair. We spoke to Paic about a range of topics from mathematics to remote working to see how it has influenced her art.

CulturePledge: Looking through your work, there is a distinct divide between 2D, pattern-focused pieces and linear, 3D perspective pieces. For example, Horizon compared to Favorite Illusion.

Do they come from two distinct periods of your work, or are they made concurrently? Why is this and what influences them?

Zeljka Paic: When starting a new artwork, I always ask myself if I am really inspired by the subject matter, or if I just want to add another artwork to the series. I don’t want to put pressure on myself to work on only one subject. Architecture and geometry dominate my work but if there is something else that inspires me, I will do that and take the risk.

The best examples are nature paintings and work like Love and Logic, Aging, Social Distancing, and Expressiveness that belong to the Frame series. So, the answer is they are made in the same period. Art for me is about freedom and honesty.

CP: This distinct juxtaposition in your work was the first thing that struck me. Cities and nature seem to be fighting with each other for your affection. Why do these two opposite environments influence you so much?

ZP: They are actually fighting in reality and what I am trying to achieve is to bring them closer together in my art. I am still working on them separately until I find that perfect connection between them. There is also the influence of the place where I live and work.

The house is in the city center but surrounded by trees. In the front of every window is a tree and that truly makes me happy and makes me think about the future of cities and their collaboration with nature.

CP: The city has undergone a huge change recently. Businesses have closed, people have moved to remote working and a mass exodus is taking place. As someone with a background in architecture, what do you think the future of the city is and what impact will this have?

ZP: When the Industrial Revolution happened, cities started to develop rapidly and it looks like it is unstoppable. Now we need a natural revolution. Remote working would probably help distance people from the cities and give them a healthier life.

Architecture in that case would be more grounded and not in constant competition with the sky. The architecture will shape according to human behavior and values. I hope it will not always be about power but some other values in life.

CP: You talked about social distancing as an influence. Can you elaborate? How did social distancing and the pandemic impact your creativity?

The artwork Social Distancing is dedicated to all the people who suffered during the pandemic. Covid-19 did not affect me personally as much as it probably did most of the people around the world. I am familiar with isolation since I was a child when the war in former Yugoslavia happened in the 90s.

Also, being an artist is not easy anyway. There are similar issues – isolation is needed in order to create art, and everything is unpredictable, including economics. But art is very healthy for all of us and that is a huge difference.

CP: You are very open and candid about the influence of geometry in your work. How important is mathematics as an influence?

ZP: I had both experiences, drawing with and without geometry knowledge and I realized our eyes are often lying to us, but geometry does not. Drawing a still life or a cityscape without using perspective rules will probably result in many mistakes and there will be a lack of stability and strength.

That is why I think perspective should be equally studied at the Faculty of Architecture and Academy of Arts. Geometry is also a great foundation for abstract art, art installation, sculpture, or any other visual expression.

CP: At what point do you think a piece stops becoming art and is a piece of math, or a piece of math becomes a work of art?

ZP: Creativity is crucial. Math is one of the great tools.

CP: What is your creative process? Could you describe it from the influence to the finished canvas?

It starts with a lot of thinking about the idea. The title of an artwork is very important to me, and the quality of materials used. The details are always left for the end, I do not let them bother me in the process.

Cities Are Evolving, and So Is Art

If a “natural revolution” occurs as she calls it, cities could look quite different in the future, and won’t be “in constant competition with the sky.” And that could mean a healthier existence for many people, according to Paic. Until then, she will continue to depict the struggle between the natural and built environment.

If you want to read about other unique artists like Zeljka Paic that thrived creatively during the pandemic, then stop by our creators section. We have a monthly artist focus and are always highlighting interesting physical and digital art.

You can find more of Zeljka Paic’s work on her Instagram and website.