I live in Novi Sad, the biggest city in Vojvodina, the northern province of Serbia. Pannonian plains were always my home and something I unfairly take for granted sometimes. I scoff at every "uh, Vojvodina is boring", though. It's all a matter of point of view. Endless rows of fluffy clouds and a view to very far away are an everyday thing, especially fantastic when looked at from a low mountain called Fruška Gora, the second "biggest" mountain in the region, around 500m high. Equally, I have a nice view just on a regular sunset, sunrise, or a stormy day from my window looking toward the northwest. Plains have their own charm.
Vojvodina is, and always was, a home to a lot of smaller settlements with not many people for modern standards. Some parts of the region still retain the rural style of life that has not changed too much over the years, even centuries or prosperity on one side and conflict on the other.
In this series of paintings, a lot of the rural heritage is still there, but you can see the advancements of modernity with spaceships flying around, huge structures, architecture style. In this vision of the future, humans are still doing the majority of jobs, and there is a particular blend of high and low tech, as you can see in some images. There's no one story to join them all, as I am still thinking of a way to connect all the dots. See, I am not a writer or a world builder, I like to dabble with paint mostly. Some places represented in the paintings are actual places, some are fictional and inspired by the region.
Speaking of inspiration, you can see that some of the paintings took some visual cues from the Swedish artist Simon Stålenhag (www.simonstalenhag.se) whom I admire a lot. Some paintings are inspired by Russian painters from the XIX century, some by naive art, and mostly by conceptual art & imagery I am seeing a lot on a daily basis as a digital artist. Inspirations are quite mixed and I am doing my best to make it unique. This is my first "personal project" and I am still searching for myself here.
This project is ongoing and I have several more images planned. After 8-10 are finished and presentable as large format prints, I hope to organize some exhibitions in art galleries or other venues throughout the region.
This project is a big thing for me, I believe it made me a better artist and it will continue to be one of my main focuses in the near future.
If you want to support me in my adventure, you can directly influence my life by becoming a patron on Patreon, signing up for a small monthly donation in exchange for monthly rewards from me. Go check it out and pledge if you want! https://www.patreon.com/zhillustrator?ty=h
Some images are available as prints in my society6 store: https://society6.com/zhillustrator and you can also order any of them from me, I print them in gallery quality, and send worldwide.
"Someone Played With Matches" in this painting, indeed. :) This is maybe the most unique painting in the series. You can see a tractor that looks like old Yugoslavian IMT 539, and a fuel train fire in the background. I had a ton of fun painting the smoke.
"A Winter Scene" was a joy to paint, another snowy scene in the series, but still unique with the coloration and a far view.
"Sunset by the Monoliths(workname)" is one of my newer and more favorite images in the series.
"Snow crew on Iriški Venac(workname)" shows some workers cleaning the snow for, you know, big flying spaceships to come through. :)
"The Maintenance Run", one of the first images in the series, combining some inspiration sources. I am very happy with how it turned out.
"The Powerplant", where a massive construction stands guard over a quaint flowery field. My most successful image for now.
"Pannonian Idyll" shows advanced crafts flying over a small village. My most sold-as-print image until now
"A Sound in the Night", this night image was made to contrast starkly vibrant images of the series, and it's the only night shot for now.
"Čot Station" a power station at the top of mount Fruška Gora in winter. You can see an existing TV tower here, preserved.
in "Čot Bay", the Danube has risen and we see a low-tech settlement/harbor with a view of the protected Čot, the mountaintop of Fruška Gora.
"Zasavica" shows a nature reserve marsh which was saved from technological onslaught, but it's looming, as you can see big buildings in the background.
Sketch: Palić lake, near the northern town of Subotica. I need to go there and take a bunch of reference!
