Artistic License: Maria Atanackovic - The Gloss Magazine

Artistic License: Maria Atanackovic

The visual artist and printmaker creates colourful abstract worlds that explore themes of belonging, connection and balance …

How do you define your work?

My work is about how we experience and shape the spaces around us, how our memories, emotions and perceptions influence the way we see the world. I use bold geometric shapes and composition to bring contrasts into focus. It’s a mix of careful planning and intuitive decision-making: shapes come together naturally, almost like they’re telling their own story. Through colour, form and balance, I explore how we interact with both the things we can see and the invisible influences that shape how we feel about the spaces we inhabit.

Who or what kickstarted your interest in art?

I’ve always been creative, even as a child, whether it was building Lego towns, making things with polymer clay or doodling shapes and patterns. But because I wasn’t interested in realistic drawing, I didn’t think I was “good” at art, so I didn’t study it as a subject in school. For a long time, I didn’t realise that art could take on many forms. That changed when I moved to London in my early 20s.

I did an art course and discovered abstract art, screen printing and pattern. It opened my eyes to the vast possibilities within art. I saw that art can be shapes and patterns, objects and spaces, composition and colour. I realised that realistic drawing is just one way to communicate visually and that I could create my own language using my own interests. Looking back, I can see how this path was always there.

As a child, I would often shape my thumbs and index fingers into a makeshift viewfinder. I would constantly look through this to isolate parts of the world around me. It was my way of seeing the familiar in new ways, pieces taken out of the whole and transformed into something new. For me, abstract art is an opportunity to create entirely new perspectives, images and ideas that have never been seen before. That potential for discovery is what still excites me and drives me to keep on making.

Where and how do you work?

I mainly work at Graphic Studio Dublin, where I have access to all of the specialist equipment I need for printmaking. It’s an invaluable space for professional printmakers, so I couldn’t do my work without it. I’m also a member of BKB Visual Art Studio, where I do much of my research and development work. I’m also a member of BKB Visual Art Studio, where I do much of my research and development work.

I usually work from memory and it often begins with small sketches or notes: snapshots of moments, memories or spaces that I connect with. I have several sketchbooks on the go, filled with notes, drawings and bits of ideas that come to me at different times. Collage is also a key part of my process, helping me piece everything together before I work on the final piece. While I work solo in the studio, being surrounded by other artists in these spaces is vital. Community is essential for artists – without it, it can sometimes feel like we’re living in a parallel universe, disconnected from the rest of society. It’s reassuring to be around others who are equally compelled to make art!

Your new exhibition is in tandem with works by the late Tony O’Malley. Were you inspired by his work?

There’s definitely a connection between my pieces and Tony’s in The Shape of Memory. While his carborundum prints capture the emotional rhythms of nature and memory, my screen prints focus more on structure, balance and how we experience space. What links our work is the shared use of abstraction to express something beyond the obvious, whether it’s the feeling of a landscape or the spaces we create in our minds. I didn’t set out to directly respond to Tony’s work, but I’ve always admired the way he brought so much emotion and depth to his pieces. Seeing our works together, I’m reminded of how abstraction can be a way to explore both personal and shared memories and experiences, with each of us using it in our own unique way.

Need to know: The Shape of Memory opens at Graphic Studio Gallery, Cope Street, Dublin on February 1 to March 8. www.graphicstudiodublin.com

SEE MORE: Artistic License – Gordon Harris

THE GLOSS MAGAZINE SUBSCRIPTION

All the usual great, glossy content of our large-format magazine in a neater style delivered to your door.

SUBSCRIBE NOW

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This