Ana Miljkovac was born in 1967 in Niksic. In 1987 she enrolled at the Academy of Arts in Cetinje (Montenegro) graduating in 1992. In 2003 Miljkovac completed her master thesis titled Base and Sculpture – Realistically Imaginary Relations. She is a lecturer at the Faculty of Philosophy in Niksic and the co-author of four textbooks and three teacher’s manuals. Miljkovac has had 13 solo exhibitions and many group exhibitions and has participated in biennials.
Self-taught or art school?
Title: Doctor of Art, Fine Art, Faculty for Art and design, Belgrade, 2013.
I am a lecturer at the Faculty of Philosophy in Niksic. I paint and create objects and sculptures of different materials.
If you could own one work of art what would it be?
Anish Kapoor: Sky Mirror (especially settings in nature)
How would you describe your style?
As very original and unobtrusive, I am self-centred; the art of any other artist does not influence my art. On the other hand, I deal with what is universal and common to all people. I am interested in the archetypal, the unconscious.
For example, amulets have a “practical” use: they were made as boxes in which we can keep small, important things. Amulets should stand in an important place at home or at work. It is a place we often look at, especially when we drink coffee, tea or meditate. Also, they are individualized: if at this moment of life we need strength, courage, there is a black amulet with a pinnacle, if we need a harmonious relationship with ourselves and the environment, there is an amulet with a white ball. Special larger dishes, such as the Ode of Joy 2, are associated with playfulness, joy and tenderness. (4th, photo by Milos Zvicer).
Talismans have a similar “function” as Amulets but are not made as dishes but sculptures. I think that my works are direct transmitters from the centre to centre.
Is narrative important within your work?
Mostly it is. These are works that have their own “story”. For some, it is clear in the first moments of viewing, and some are extremely layered and the story would last endlessly.
Who are your favourite artists, and why?
Kazimir Mljevic and Anish Kapoor, because their art reflects spiritually through a direct influence on matter. I believe that exceptional artists can only achieve this because it does not happen by their very intention, but by their state of mind.
What or who inspires your art?
Inspiration is my spiritual life but also the connection between the events in my life and global events. I deal intensively with the relationship between the general, the global and the special, the individual. I am especially interested in the way in which these global events are reflected in the course of my and other people’s lives.
Influences on my art are from non-visual sources. At first glance, this is a paradox because it is visual. However, it is about thinking and emotions that partly touch other types of art. It is literature: Ivo Andric, Milan Kundera… lately Karl Gustav Jung, actually, literature in the field of psychology, then films by various author.
Where’s your studio, and what’s it like?
I had more of them; they are usually old rooms such as a former theatre or abandoned chemical laboratory. I currently have three rooms: in one there are materials and sculptures, and in the other, I work, there are many works on the walls. (photos 6. 7. author of images: prof. Anka Gardasevic). These are mostly canvas works with ceramic applications. One of them, What can I say to you when you know everything, was chosen as the title page of the catalogue for the international collective exhibition Imago Mundi, Benetton collection (Imago Mundi – Montenegro: Imago Montenegrina collection). From that series, it is currently in the studio What can I say to you when you know everything 11 (photo 8. by Anka Gardasevic). My work takes place in stages; sometimes, I only do drawings, collages, objects with ceramic applications … Then I clean and organize everything for that type of work. Sometimes I sculpt, I bring clay, easel, spatula, tables… When I sculpt, the studio, of course, looks completely different. So, depending on what I’m doing right now, my studio is changing the look. At the end of one phase, three-dimensional works are stored in a separate room; two-dimensional mostly remain on the walls.
Sometimes I have an exhibition in the studio.
Do you have any studio rituals?
Mostly, I’m just drinking coffee. Very slowly. It’s part of the enjoyment while working.
What are you working on currently?
My work now flows in several directions. One of them is Harmonization in the field of view. These are sculptures that influence harmoniously on space and people, there are also some teapots with cups.
During the isolation, I dealt with the current topic of the environment through the concept of One Month = 5%. It is about the following:
The brain sometimes responds strangely, but logically.
In the meantime, in times of anxiety, panic, fear … I don’t break under pressure. I read fashion magazines, I don’t think about the virus … One such harmless (somewhat superficial) thing – fashion. Fashion is the second most polluting industry on the planet! Most people buy new things just because of habit. But if each of us wore our wardrobe for a month longer, the emissions of harmful gases would be reduced by 5% … One Month = 5%
Then I almost threw away one old addition of a magazine. It was one practical part with patterns for dresses, skirts, pants … And as a little shock: I saw a face mask (first second), not a bowtie (second second). What a small step from butterfly to face masks! We can’t fool the brain, it sees what it expects. Or … what it is supposed to see.
This butterfly mask was my first work. Now she’s my leitmotif. I made a number of works, the concept became: Month = 5%.
Where can we buy your art?
Direct call: miljkovacana@gmail.com
or:
https://www.facebook.com/ana.djukanovicmiljkovac?ref=bookmarks
What are your ambitions?
I try not to cultivate great ambitions, especially at a time when it is clear that the realization of our plans does not depend on us. I want the audience to see my works, to communicate with them. I am convinced that their spirit can reach the most hidden places in us and have a cathartic effect.