U duhu 2021

Here’s Dragan Ilić Di Vogo’s painting U duhu, which I’m guessing was made with acrylics on canvas. I love how the horse almost flickers in and out of focus against the deep space backdrop, with these two planets hovering either side, like cosmic headlights. I can imagine Di Vogo, building up the image in layers, letting the paint drip and pool, allowing chance and intuition to guide the brush. The horse's face has a haunted, spectral quality, with small red markings almost like scars or otherworldly tattoos. The color palette—muted grays, browns, and reds—gives a sense of melancholy, but with the suggestion of other worlds. Painters have always been in conversation with one another, borrowing and building on ideas across time. The great thing is that painting is really just a way of working through questions and exploring new ways of seeing, thinking, and feeling.