DEAR EDOUARD.

Finish artist Mirza Cizmic, born in 1985 (Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina). He graduated from High School of Applied Arts in Sarajevo. Mirza holds a master’s degree from the Academy of Fine Arts in Helsinki, Department of Painting. In addition to contemporary painting he is also involved in sculpture, performance, and film. In recent years Mirza has held several solo exhibitions and has participated actively in group exhibitions both in Finland and abroad. His work is found in numerous private collections and his work can be found in public collections such as the Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art, National gallery of Finland and HanaholmenSwedish cultural center, Finland. “Stolen memories – Chronicles Like in life, but in the context of painting, I would say that for me, painting is the process that takes me from confusion to understanding… Memories from my past are based on stories of my parents and relatives. I have no my own childhood photographs, that is why I am using someone Elses photos in order to construct the message according to my own concept. Images (photos) became instruments that are necessary in order to serve the concept of making narrative for the Stolen Memories series. I paint what I feel, not what I see. It is a pure response to the idea of my own memories. Some responses are illogical, and I am allowing them to emerge, suspending my critical judgment. In the context f my childhood, paintings were supposed to mimic subjective experience of events that happened. Most of the paintings are made as a combination of multiple old polaroid photographs. It is basically an extension or amplification of the collage approach. I am constantly fighting with my past; it is an infinite fight with no winners. Freedom is my goal; courage is my ally. The questions such as “Who I am?” and “What I have become?”. Next to my internal fear of the unknown makes me wonder where I belong?”