Exploring the Spectrum: A Voyage from Light to Dark and Beyond

Source: Jelena Tucak

A selection of work from the Artist, Jelena Tucak

This post was originally published on The Intelligencer.

Born in Split, Croatia in 1997, Jelena Tucak graduated from the local high school of fine arts and later obtained a bachelor’s degree in painting from the Art Academy in the same city. With a focus on exploring themes such as mental illnesses like depression and borderline personality disorder, the artist also delves into the concepts of beauty and the interconnectedness of these themes in her works.

Having participated in two group exhibitions, namely “Production 2022” at the Multimedia Cultural Center Split and “Krugovi” at Kaštilac, Kaštel Gomilica, the artist also showcased a solo exhibition titled “JE” at the House of the Sun in Split. Currently residing and working in Croatia, the artist draws inspiration from sacred art, visionary art, and space art, utilizing acrylic or tempera on canvas for her creations.

This is what Jelena says on her art:

One night, when I was 16, I went sad to sleep. I had almost always, in the moments before closing my eyes, imagined beautiful places and situations to get rid of stress. And so I did that night, as usual, let my mind remember something beautiful like remote places or dreaming of an ideal future. But, this time, in front of my eyes, the unique landscapes started to materialize. I had a feeling like I was visiting another planet and, most fascinating, that vision didn’t look like it was made up, so clearly I saw the details and everything seemed like I was remembering some scene from a couple of days before.

The next night, of course, I wanted to see those places again and explore the others. I also wanted to find out as much information as possible: Was this a paranormal experience or some kind of contact with alien entities? Maybe a memory of a past life or a vision from the distant future of planet Earth?

The scenes that followed before my eyes continued to come unexpectedly, even when I wouldn’t want them. As I eventually became a person who was half skeptical and half enchanted by the paranormal, my beliefs required to go in the other direction as well and to explore: Were the scenes I saw the creation exclusively of my mind? Why were they showed like that?

I soon realized that, at the first encounter with these unusual worlds, I was overwhelmed by the sadness that was the product of emotional trauma, ignorance, vulnerability, and fear of life circumstances at the time. Acrylic weights on canvas and spontaneous viewing of wondrous landscapes represented an ideal escape. All my life, trying to remove these emotions, I have been drawing and painting, since the third year of my life. Yet it was only at the age of sixteen that my imagination shaped visions that directly described what I wanted to let go of and, moreover, beautify the same.

Exploring my own thoughts and feelings, I intensively respect the power of the human mind to turn the causes of sadness and fear into something enigmatic and sensational. Besides being an exciting experience of encountering one’s own subconscious in the form of a space journey, it is useful in gaining a deeper understanding of oneself and others in terms of suppressing emotions. It also allows me to approach taboo topics such as borderline personality disorder or depression.

The turning point in my creation happened when attending the Art Academy in Split: there, in addition to technical skills in painting and theoretical knowledge, I also remembered something very interesting that one professor said: ”A good work of art is honest, and the bad one isn’t.”

I am glad that art can be outside the framework of truth, and therefore is not subject to either scientific or religious norms. Taking my own works as an example, they can be interpreted similarly to the works of Alex Grey and other proponents of visionary art: such works are seen as something sublime, beyond the reach of everyday life. Similarly, my works are a psychological stripping down aimed at liberating emotions, and not just mine: I want to encourage other people to beautify everything that is negative in the subconscious, whether through creation or observation.

Gallery: A Voyage from Light to Dark and Beyond by Jelena Tucak