Jelena Kovačević rođena je 1982. u Osijeku. Na Akademiji likovnih umjetnosti u Zagrebu 2005. diplomira grafiku nakon čega na Poslijediplomskom magistarskom studiju grafike na ljubljanskoj Akademiji za likovno umetnost in oblikovanje diplomira 2009. Poslijediplomski doktorski studij slikarstva na Akademiji likovnih umjetnosti u Zagrebu završava 2020., a 2021. Poslijediplomski specijalistički studij kreativnih terapija u Osijeku, u suradnji Akademije za umjetnost i kulturu i Medicinskoga fakulteta, smjer art terapija. Zaposlena je u zvanju izvanrednog profesora na Fakultetu za odgojne i obrazovne znanosti, Osijek te kao vanjski suradnik na Akademiji za umjetnost i kulturu u Osijeku. Usporedno s pedagoškom i art-terapijskom aktivnošću umjetnički je aktivna te je izlagala na sedamnaest samostalnih te na više skupnih izložbi u zemlji i inozemstvu. U svome radu poglavito koristi medij crteža, slike, fotografije i teksta, kojima oblikuje priče iz područja osobnih sjećanja, subjektivnih doživljaja i obiteljskoga naslijeđa.

Jelena Kovačević was born in 1982 in Osijek. She graduated in printmaking from the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb in 2005, after which she completed a Postgraduate master's degree in printmaking at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Ljubljana in 2009. She completed her PhD in painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb in 2020, and in 2021 finished a Postgraduate specialist study in creative therapies in Osijek, focusing on art therapy, in collaboration with the Academy of Arts and Culture and the Faculty of Medicine. She is employed as an associate professor at the Faculty of Education in Osijek and as an external collaborator at the Academy of Arts and Culture in Osijek. Alongside her pedagogical and art therapy activities, she is also artistically active and has exhibited in seventeen solo and several group exhibitions both domestically and internationally. In her work, she primarily uses the media of drawing, painting, photography, and text, through which she shapes stories related to personal memories, subjective experiences, and family heritage.

Jelena Kovačević
Bez naziva, 2023. / Untitled, 2023
kombinirana tehnika (akril na papiru, šivanje) / mixed media (acrylic on paper, sewing)
170 x 140 cm

Narativnost i koncept postaju opterećenje, poput viška informacija. Ovaj subjektivni osjećaj ne čudi, s obzirom da sam tijekom istraživanja čitala opsežnu pisanu dokumentaciju povezanu s temom koju sam proučavala, te sam iz toga razloga rasterećenje pronalazila u apstraktnom izrazu. Tada nastaje serija radova maloga formata u tehnici akrila na papiru, koje slikam u pauzama između pisanja. Boja se na slikama dugo sušila, a time i postupno mijenjala izgled rada. Pomišljala sam kako je proces nastanka djela, s usputnim, planiranim i spontanim izmjenama, vidljiv umjetniku, ali ne i promatraču. Proces, koji je jednako (ako ne i više, govorimo li o kvaliteti života) važan kao i konačno djelo, uglavnom nije vizualno dostupan. Tada ujedno po prvi put jasno osjećam intrinzičnu potrebu za stvaranjem nevezanu uz konkretnu namjenu u budućnosti. Umjetnost omogućuje osamljivanje bez dislociranja, odvajanje uz prisutnost. Godinu dana nakon radova maloga formata, nastaje rad Bez naziva (2023), u istoj tehnici akrila na papiru. Procesualnost i sporost nastanka proširuje se na veću površinu koja je i ovaj put lišena sadržaja i jasnih obrisa ploha. Stvaranje oblika prepustila sam fizičkom djelovanju boje, fluidnosti razrijeđenog akrila i kosini podloge kojom se slijevala tekućina. Suzdržavala sam se od svakog planiranog poteza i dopuštala slobodno, neizbježno stvaranje mrlja čim bi kist dotaknuo papir. Potreba za osamljivanjem simbolički je ostvarena kroz kombinaciju slikarskoga medija i aktivnosti šivanja. U želji da se i po završetku osjeti sporost nastanka djela, nasumično provlačim različite konce iglom kroz papir, ispreplićući mrežu. Šivanjem započinjem novi proces kojim stvaram probadajući, planiram sljedeći potez, vraćam se ispraviti grešku i neprestano mijenjam položaj tijela. Šivajući vrlo lako odlutam, s nogama čvrsto na zemlji. 

The narrative and the concept become a burden, like an information overload. This subjective feeling is not surprising, considering that during my research I read extensive written documentation related to the topic I was studying. I sought refuge in abstract expression, creating small acrylic paintings between writing sessions. The slow-drying paint allowed for gradual, unintended transformations, making me realize how he creative process—with its serendipitous moments—is visible to the artist but not to the viewer. The process, which is equally (if not more so, when talking about the quality of life) important as the final work, is generally not visually accessible. At that moment, I also clearly feel an intrinsic need to create, unrelated to any specific future purpose. Art allows for solitude without dislocation, separation while being present. A year after the small-format works, the work Untitled (2023) was created, using the same technique of acrylic on paper. The processuality and slowness of creation expand to a larger surface, which is once again devoid of content and clear contours of planes. I surrendered the creation of forms to the physical action of the paint, the fluidity of diluted acrylic, and the incline of the surface down which the liquid flowed. I restrained myself from any planned stroke and allowed the free, inevitable creation of stains as soon as the brush touched the paper. The need for solitude was symbolically fulfilled through a combination of painting media and the activity of sewing. In a desire to feel the slowness of the work's creation even after its completion, I randomly weave various threads through the paper, intertwining a network. With sewing, I begin a new process by creating punctures, planning the next move, returning to correct mistakes, and constantly changing my body position. While sewing, I very easily drift away, with my feet firmly on the ground.