Aleksandra Smiljkovic-Vasovic’s virtual gallery
I create my life and art on my own
For her, art is the way of life. Beside paint brush, she uses computer mouse for painting, but she also makes really imaginative and tasty macrobiotic food, translates…
Artists
For painter Aleksandra Smiljkovic-Vasovic, the art is way of life. Capricorn in horoscope, she has always been a creator of her artistic and living sensibility: beside paint brush, she uses computer mouse for painting, but she also makes really imaginative and tasty macrobiotic food, translates, practices meditations…Her recognizable artistic style include contemporary techniques: digital animations, prints, drawings, but also traditional techniques are not set aside. It also says in her curriculum vitae that she graduated at two faculties – she finished bachelor and master’s studies of painting at the Faculty of Fine Arts, and Faculty of Architecture. She also completed piano lessons at primary music school in Nis, with professor Ljubica Milosavljevic. She says that Mozart, Bach and Beethoven were her ideals in music, and in painting those were autonomous artists whose works could be current in all periods and epochs: Vermeer, Rembrandt, Velasquez, Cezanne, Bonar. She has exhibited paintings, drawings and works at collective and individual exhibitions in the country and on almost all continents. Her works are in collections of domestic, but also foreign art lovers.
She considers that an artist should not always wait for someone to organize his exhibition. Therefore her website www.aleksandravasovic.com has several purposes: beside Internet galleries where Internet works are displayed as well as presentation of exhibitions, there is also sale part.
“Through Internet, more people could become acquainted with the work of some artist. Also, an artist could present his creative work in a way that suits him. In my case, the website does not have the purpose of the catalogue only, but it also has creative function. Since individual exhibitions are not that often, and maybe someone from other countries wants to become acquainted with my work, he does not have to wait for exhibitions but with the help of Internet could anytime get an insight in my work” – says Aleksandra Smiljkovic-Vasovic.
The last exhibition of Aleksandra Smiljkovic-Vasovic was ambient project that represented a combination of digital print, light intervention in space called “Diamond” (www.aleksandravasovic.com/diamond.htm) in October 2007, in ULUS Gallery.
“I have presented a diamond made in computer and animated in a way to continuously go round in circles around its axis of rotation, creating an impression that it shines a light. It was displayed in big format so that it made an impression of monumental painting at the gallery wall. As the second part, there were sequences and variations of that animation that were arranged around at the walls. Everything was made in digital print technique. As the third part, there were light effects arranged in gallery windows, and the light that changed in certain rhythm, lighting up both exterior and interior of the gallery. All three parts made a unique story - Aleksandra Smiljkovic-Vasovic explains.
Our interlocutor says there is new on-going exhibition in her virtual gallery at the website. It is the work that she plans to place at certain exhibitions as autonomous Internet work. “These are gentle rose petals. However, this work is at the same time also an outline for some future extensive work and consists of computer animation, outline for ambient work that would present how this animation would look like if it would be shown in some real gallery”, says the artist and adds:
She says that macrobiotics is also a part of her artistic sensibility. While she prepares macrobiotic food, she in that way also creates her artworks – this time in the kitchen. The food that comes out from her kitchen is the spectrum of all the colors. She explains that there are instructions how the food is prepared, which foodstuff could be used and then anyone could combine them according to one’s feeling and make what one like. “This gives me an opportunity to be creative. With macrobiotics, it’s also important that foodstuff is not bought and prepared automatically, but you have to consciously choose what you would like to eat, to buy and prepare. And then everything is easier, more beautiful and more pleasant”, talks Aleksandra Smiljkovic-Vasovic.
- Of course I can not escape from the art. I cultivate my poetics for years. In that way, my attitude towards everything crystallized and clarified more and more. Both towards the people and the air, water, food. An intolerance towards specific foodstuff have arisen, but also an intolerance towards certain phenomena, and even towards certain kinds of socializing that didn’t suit me anymore and I simply couldn’t make any compromise. I have started to pay attention in order to avoid certain foodstuff that incommoded me in my nutrition. The closest to my way of nutrition was macrobiotics, which is a kind of philosophy in itself. And while macrobiotic food is being prepared and while foodstuff is being chosen, there are reasons why this specific foodstuff is being used or why a certain combination of foodstuff is being made.
Meditations are her need. She emphasizes that she doesn’t want to experience even them as mere rituals. She meditates when she feels a need. Aleksandra Smiljkovic-Vasovic says that, for her, meditations, beside classical ones, could also be walking but also all other things that we do consciously, and not automatically, so painting could be meditation as well. For some time, she has practiced martial arts which she understood in a meditative way, and then she came back to yoga.
She enjoyed the book “No Time for Karma” by Robey Paxton so much that she translated the book from English to Serbian language, it’s on the Internet now and waits for the publisher. She has entered into translation work by chance, and committed to it with whole her soul.
- Four years ago, by email, I have received a recommendation for Robey Paxton’s book from my friend Margita. The same evening I have downloaded it from the Internet, have printed and have read. The book is metaphysical and deals with spiritual aspects of life in a warm, human way. I have contacted the author, asked if it is possibly translated into Serbian and said that, if it is not, I would do that. It turned out that an author of such a book, as it was logical to expect, could only be spiritual being, kind, humane. He was glad for my idea to translate the book. I have translated it in a short time. And I have enjoyed in every moment. Paxton put it instantly on his website http://www.paxtonrobey.com/ and it stands there for years. I have noticed that the book is one of the biggest hits for free download on the Internet.
When asked how much karma is important to her and if she believes in it, she replies: “I go through life more with my heart and follow my feelings and inner voice. The book is also close to this attitude of mine. Paxton says that classical attitude towards karma “if I am good I will be awarded, and if I make a mistake, there will be punishment’ has to be replaced with the attitude that it depends on you what will happen in your life. You create everything. There is nobody beyond or outside you who award and who punish you. A person alone is responsible for everything, which is not naïve at all. The book is entitled “No Time for Karma – Stepping off the Wheel of Pain and Struggle” and it send us word that we should step out from the circle in which we spin, simply don’t agree to karmic rules, tell them goodbye. And that’s it.”
- There were so many people who thanked me for translating it. I didn’t pay to translate it, I didn’t have any material gain of it, but the biggest pay for me is when someone tells me that the book healed him. If I helped someone in such a way, that’s the biggest award for me, Aleksandra adds. First of all, thanks to Paxton for writing this warm and healing book.
Authors: Marina Bulatovic and Gordana Jocic
Antrfile
A painter and an architect
- Even now, when I am not a student anymore, I mainly work a lot and with total concentration, i.e. as I already have said, I work with complete awareness and joy, and not automatically. Architect in me also arise while walking in Belgrade and notice something that is an eyesore. At advanced training, I have stayed in Paris for several months. I have always admired that city. Wherever you look, each cubic millimeter was determined as it has to be. Everything is harmonized, stylistically harmonized. I would like to be the same here too, says Aleksandra Smiljkovic-Vasovic.
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The Golden Room of Aleksandra Vasovic will be shown at QUCERA Gallery in Belgrade from February 19 through March 3, 2009. GOLDEN ROOM is computer animation - ambience with lightning effects . The Room, i.e. gallery lobby, hosting the project is rich in details with them being a visual attractions in their very nature: 2 walls and some details are painted in bright yellow, floor is coated with black & white tiles, the central section of the ceiling is occupied by a huge square-segmented mirror. The viewer is attracted by a reception desk where there are a couple of glasses and wooden doors and big windows with strip curtains, attractive lighting and illuminant items. Aleksandra Vasovic has been a Portfolio Artist at absolutearts.com since 2006. 
