Twenty-five years ago, Ciba Karisik escaped war-torn Sarajevo and settled in a fishing village on the northern Croatian coast with his wife and their daughter. A small church studio provided the artist a quiet sanctuary out of which emerged the still life paintings for which he has become internationally renowned.

From shells and old clocks to vegetables and dried bouquets of wild flowers set against decaying wall backgrounds, Karisik used his well-trained ability in the trompe l’oeil technique to create something grand from the humble in those healing years spent on the Adriatic coast.

His world of painting today continues to reflect this philosophy characterized by a profound appreciation for the simple things life has to offer. Karisik’s paintings tell eloquent stories of humanity. His works are deliberate statements against the impersonality of our ephemeral world. We pause, consider, and behold timeless objects that keep our memories and communicate messages across time.

In this retrospective exhibition in honour of his 60th birthday, Karisik consciously remains true to himself and re-examines the strength and authenticity found in his pictorial language.

He patiently constructs his world of interiors into spaces of intimacy and mystery. The archaeology of walls - the raw material of his creative discourse – has become a recognizable element of Karisik's calligraphy as a painter. His walls are marked by a triumph of splashes, cracks, lumps, seams, and drips, revealing the sophisticated tactility of his painting.

Karisik invites us to step through his door into the harmony of his landscape. He paints the very spirit of nature, but with a human presence – a distant village enveloped in mist, grazing sheep, a footpath leading the imagination somewhere beyond.

With his extraordinary articulation and sensibility, Karisik takes us on his creative journey and we celebrate with him the richness of painting.