Vesna Jovanovic
Chicago, Illinois, United States
Artist’s statement
I began working on the Pareidolia series in 2002 as part of my interest in exploring the relationship between chance and order. After randomly spilling some ink on paper, I looked at the shapes and saw objects that I associate with science: test tubes, flasks, and other laboratory equipment. The randomness of spilled ink combined with the control of intricate drawing exemplifies my approach to art and science. In art as in science, there is a constant struggle to leave some things to chance.
When I returned to this creative method in 2006 (after several years of working mostly within photography), I noticed that with each drawing my test tubes began to look more and more organic—they now resemble veins, branches, intestines, roots and neurons. This shift was not fully realized until Temporal Nexus, in which a central knot ties various organs together. Ultimately this body of work alludes to the confusing mixture of curiosity, fear, awe, and mystery that surround the concepts of illness, research, and scientific progress. The drawings are at the same time enticing and repulsive; they are detailed and graceful, yet chaotic and unpredictable.
2007
24×18 in.
2008
24×18 in.
2008
60×40 in.
2008
30×22 in.
2008
40×26 in.
2008
19×24 in.
VESNA JOVANOVIC is a contemporary visual artist who works in a range of media, from pinhole photography to surrealist drawing techniques and coiled double-walled ceramic vessels. Her creative process typically involves uncertainty and randomness coupled with meticulous deliberation, often exploring concepts of time, merging dualities, and science. Jovanovic holds a BA degree in Fine Arts and a BS degree in Chemistry from Loyola University Chicago, where she received First Place, the Mellon Award, at the senior exhibition. She also holds a BFA in Studio Art from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where she was granted a Merit Scholarship of Recognition. Her MFA degree in Photography is from The Ohio State University. Jovanovic is a recipient of the 2006 Drench Award in Illustration and the 2007 Chicago CAAP grant. She was selected as a Curator’s Choice Artist at the 2007 Chicago Art Open. In 2009, Jovanovic was featured in Seed Magazine and in Discover Magazine blogs. Her artwork has been included in over fifty exhibitions since 2003, most recently a solo exhibition at the International Museum of Surgical Science in Chicago, IL. Her website is www.vesnaonline.com.
Highlighted in Frontispiece Volume 2, Issue 1 – Winter 2010
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