DRAŽEN VITOLOVIĆ: UNBORN SHAPES |
Meduza Gallery Koper | 7.07.23 – 12.10.23 |
Opening of the exhibition: Friday July 7, 2023, at 19.00

»How many forms does the all-encompassing space conceal and can accomodate within itself? In other words, forms, like space, are infinite, they have no end. At the same time, forms are not only physical, but also exist as mental objects. In this sence, the definition of form as something finite seems to be somewhat unsatisfactory, as it always contains the possibility of change. It is the incomleteness that allows it to grow, continue and further transform.« notes the artist Dražen Vitolović.
In his art work so far, the author focuses on understanding sculpture in its broadest sense. He researches interventions in public space, the relationship between new and traditional technologies, as well as the innovative use of ceramics in sculpture and object design. He pays special attention to the notions of adaptability and modularity in the medium of sculpture. The Unborn Shapes exhibition also deals with the question of understanding sculpture and form as something permanent and strictly defined. At this solo exhibition, Vitolović presents a series fo sculptures, ‘clay drawings’ and a video.
The sculptural installation adapts to spatial situations, as it is built with a structure similar to nanostructures created by nature. It can be transformed by combining individual elements, by adding or removing them – creating new, potentially unlimited forms. The sculptures are made in combination of two materials, metal and stone. The original forms of stones, found objects shaped by nature, serve as connections and contact points that expand into space and thus create various compositions. They can go on endlessly, either physically and as imaginary forms, both in the eyes of the artist or observer.
The works are placed in a shallow square forms, filled with water, emphasizing and mirroring the natural stone forms and composition structures.
At the same time, they create an apparent sense of movement and change.
A series of ‘clay drawings’ are captured in black square frame-cubes and placed on the walls of the gallery. Although these are two-dimensional woks with motifs of amorphous shapes, the texture of the clay conjures depth and third dimension and offers the possibility of superimposing the image-object. The base material for paintings was made by the artist, by mixing fired clay powder as a pigment and Gum Arabic (Gummi Arabica) as a binder.
The tendency to constantly create and recreate new forms is also emphasized by the video, a stop motion animation that combines hundreds of hand-made sketches. Forms here develop from one point and return to it, over and over again.
The exhibition Unborn Shapes, by use of various visual media, draws attention to the unlimited potential and impermanence of basic, archaic and primordial forms, their appearance, change and termination.
Dražen Vitolović (1967, Rijeka, Croatia) graduated visual arts at the University of Rijeka, Department of Visual Arts. He finished his master’s degree in sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Ljubljana, Slovenia and continued his professional development at the European Ceramics Work Centre (EKWC) in Den Bosh, The Netherlands. He works in the field of visual arts, sculpture and object design. He exhibited independently and took part in a number of group expositions. He participates in and leads several scientific and artistic research projects. He is the founder and head of the Centre for Ceramics ‘Quark’ at The Academy of Applied Arts, University of Rijeka (APURI), where teaches at the Sculpture Department.