By National Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Đoko Mazalić from the collection of the National Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Landscape (1913) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Landscapes are among the best Mazalić’s (1888 - 1975) works. From the first works that pulsate in springtime ease and freshness, to the most famous ones that represent mainly late summer and fall.
Motif from Vranduk (1920) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Escape to Egypt (1926) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Even though a great connoisseur of icons, especially local masters and schools insisting on the preservation of tradition, Mazalić decided to make his own interpretation and understanding of Biblical motifs in his paintings.
Old Poplars (c. 1930) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
As old buildings are abandoned and become dilapidated beyond repair, returning to the nature from which they arrived, old poplar trees rule majestically over the landscapes. Man is as small towards nature as it should be in real life. Consequently, harmony and natural equilibrium, so many times disturbed in reality, rule in Mazalić’s landscapes.
Motif from Vogošća (1930) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Village under Snow (1930) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Village in Bosnia (c. 1931) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Mazalić's landscapes are the most faithful representation of Bosnia - sumptuous and modest at the same time.
Motif with Fortress (c. 1931) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
"Thanks to my work in nature, I felt a great influence of colors, shape of objects, soil and weather on creation of an artistic attitude when reflecting my inner moods on canvas. An art historian could read from such paintings, as some sort of physician, the inner life of the artist - only by looking at colors or, possibly, brush strokes, regardless of the given object (be it realism or abstraction)."
Đoko Mazalić
Landscape (c.1937) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
After World War II
Landscapes painted after the World War II bring a completely different artistic expression. One can again observe restless hand and intense color on them, even when it is about quiet parts around the Sava River. As he was turning inward, Mazalić completely retreated in painting that was encroaching into abstraction, not abstraction of form, but rather abstraction of spirit.
Periphery (1962) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Informal Settlement (1962) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Motif from Herzegovina (1965) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Semberija (1962) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Conversation with Flowers (1964) by Đoko MazalićNational Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
© 2017 National Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina | Umjetnička galerija Bosne i Hercegovine
Exhibition
Đoko Mazalić, 1888 - 1975
Author: Ivana Udovičić
Photographs: Archive of the National Gallery of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Text: Exhibition catalogue "Đoko Mazalić, 1888 - 1975", SPKD "Prosvjeta", Sarajevo, 2017.
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