Andrej Bjelić

His artistic practice develops from an early interest in drawing, which remains the foundation of his visual think- ing. Drawing from his immediate surroundings and everyday motifs, Bjelić constructs a recognizable icono- graphic system grounded in figuration, in which human and animal forms are transformed into hybrid, often fantastical entities. He realized his first solo exhibition, This is Andrej Bjelić, in 2022 at Gallery KVART BW in Belgrade, marking the beginning of his more active presence on the contemporary art scene. In the same year, he presented the cycle Fiery Pets at the Bioskopa Balkan venue, organized by the Saša Marčeta Foundation, where his work was contextualized through a curatorial text by Ana Popović Bodroža, which positioned his iconography in relation to contemporary transformations of the animal imaginary. In the following period, he participated in several exhibition and production platforms, including the exhibition Lion on Wires (2023), as well as a three-month artist residency and exhibition in Barcelona within the Yoga Cats program. In 2025, his work was also presented at the Cultural Center Dorćol through the exhibition Firex Adventures. In parallel, he has taken part in numerous group and pop-up exhibitions, continuously expanding his presence on both the regional and international scene. During this period, Bjelić’s works were also presented within the exhibition program of the IDC showroom in Belgrade, positioning his practice within the broader field of contemporary art and design. Bjelić’s painterly process is based on a layered construction of the image, combining pastel, acrylic, enamel paint, and spray, alongside gestural mark-making and a planar treatment of the surface. His compositions are characterized by an intense palette, pronounced contour, and a direct mode of visual communication. Within a broader artistic context, his work may be considered in relation to the legacy of Pop Art and its con- temporary transformations, as well as in dialogue with the practices of artists such as Keith Haring and Jean- Michel Basquiat, yet articulated through a specific post-digital sensibility and local context. Critical reception identifies his work as highly communicative and immediate, emphasizing the freedom of gesture, the intensity of color, and his ability to establish complex relationships between image, identity, and contemporary visual culture through a reduced visual language. Works by Andrej Bjelić are held in private collections.