Folk tradition, vintage sci-fi and television shows from the 1980s all feed into the visual narratives created by Davor Gromilovic. Working with a cast of imaginary characters developed since childhood, the artist crafts thickly populated stories in which every different layer or ingredient allows for speculation.
Gromilovic trained at the University of Novi Sad, Serbia, and has worked for a number of years as Assistant Professor of Drawing at the Novi Sad Academy of Arts. His art encompasses different media including painting and video, although he is perhaps best known for his richly textured drawings in coloured pencil, a media he associates with the childhood thrill of art-making.
Monsters and lizard-like creatures are recurring features of Gromilovic’s work, which often draws on Balkan tales, including those of the “Drekavac” or “screamer.” Sega Genesis and Nintendo video games, cartoons and films such as Gremlins or Critters further impacted on his passion for character development and world-building, expressed through hundreds of carefully developed fictions.
For Gromilovic, these open narratives are a means to interact with the viewer. “When someone asks a question, that’s the important part,” he explains. That’s when the narrative starts inside the person looking at the artwork. Because when you ask yourself “What is that?” you start to think about what it could be.”
Gromilovic has hosted solo exhibitions in Serbia, Austria and USA, and has participated in group shows around the world including at the National Museum in Krakow (Poland), Halle Saint Pierre Museum, Paris (France), and the Kino Siska Centre for Urban Culture, Ljubljana (Slovenia). His artwork is held by the Luziah Hennessy Collection, Museum of Contemporary Art Vojvodina, Novi Sad (Serbia) and the Banja Luka City Art Collection (Bosnia and Herzegovina).
