Bernard Simunovic, a Croatian artist and designer with an inspiring life story, escaped the Balkan conflict as a refugee in the early 1990s. His journey took him far from his mother, hometown, and family, prompting him to interrupt his studies and seek refuge in Germany as an unaccompanied minor. Despite these formidable challenges, Simunovic remained resolute in his pursuit of the fine arts, ultimately achieving remarkable proficiency in a wide array of techniques, ranging from classical painting to the realms of collage and sculpture.
Simunovic’s
work plays with color, form, and minimalist lines to create abstract figures.
The compositions in his work begin as sculptural studies and are then worked
through with the meticulous application of acrylic, oil, spray paint, and
collage. His array of technical abilities comes from an extensive education in
the Fine Arts which began with his studies at the Academy of Sarajevo with a
focus on graphic arts and painting. When this was interrupted by the Balkan war
Simunovic finished his work in Bielefeld, Germany.
Simunovic’s
carefully crafted compositions frequently express a delicate sense of intimacy
and introspection. A simple black line, the “thread of life,” runs through and
along clever color-blocking. Together the two principle elements formulate
Simunovic’s lyrical figures who appear in transient states of delight, love, or
contemplation. As the simple contour line is combined with classical painting
and collage a work of extraordinary composition and delightful simplicity is
created.
In
his latest work, Bernard unites the disciplines of fine art, practical design,
and sculpture with unique compositions that appeal to both the creative and
practical. Graphic paintings, carefully thought out with shadow and light, become
sculptural. His artwork is characterized by impeccable craftsmanship; and a
stimulating and unsuspecting complexity, drawn from the strength of simplicity.
