Ziga

In this series of paintings, I am interested in the work of an outsider artist, my grandfather Vladimir Prokop, who is also known as 'Ziga' in his native village. In his free time, he is a photographer and a lettering artist. He creates automatic decorative letters, texts with random words, and photographic documentation of his life. I created paintings with a visual character drawn from these activities. Almost all of my paintings take the form of decorative initials – the first letters at the beginning of books and chapters – which highlight the start of the chapters through their size, shape, color, and ornate design. I have noticed that the paintings work in this context as well. The letter is their starting point; it determines the composition, shapes the system and layout of the painting’s decoration, emphasizes and frames the narrative, and also serves a decorative function. Another important source of inspiration is Ziga’s photographs, which document his personal life: family celebrations, walks in the woods, and family portraits. I base my work on these photographs, which serve as the foundation for the paintings, with the figure always at the center of the composition.