Mirza Cizmic
Souvenirs Volés

First monograph of the Finnish painter: a series of troubling family scenes whose deviance shines through under a veneer of normality, grotesque stacks of characters, objects and animals in decors with tapestries and furniture from another age, twisted and disturbing images that appear like reminiscences of a childhood marked by drama and war, never far from the living room.
“We are here in a painting that gets out of hand, a family dinner that turns into drama, absurd cruelty in the living room just after a cup of coffee…”
Mirza Cizmic (born 1985 in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina) is a painter, predominantly using oil paint on primed paper (he is also occasionally a sculptor, performer and video artist), based in Helsinki, Finland. His artistic practice is related to past experiences. The way he paints is a way of interpreting the world, not through the eyes of a painter, but through his personal experiences. The language that he uses is based on his instincts which are divided into two parts. One is objective and formal while the other is subjective which belongs to Cizmic as an individual. It is a process that takes Cizmic from confusion to understanding.
“As an artist, I must be aware of the illusive borders between art and life, art and society, as well as art and activism. Formalisation of my position in contemporary society is connected with constant questioning of myself and my role as an artist. My aim is to break the conventional taboos and depoliticise the situation and bring attention to the humanity of people.”