As an artist, my practice has always been a search for presence—that rare quality when an object seems to transcend its material and begin to speak. I encountered that presence with particular intensity, almost as a life force, in the art of the Kingdom of Benin. This watercolor series grew out of a dedicated period of study in situ at the British Museum in London. Sitting before the original brass commemorative plaques and heads, I felt an artistic debt to the Edo guilds who worked from the 15th to the 19th century.

The Slow Act of Observation

In an age of instant digital reproduction, I chose the demanding, slow medium of large-scale watercolor (≈ 70 × 50 cm) to engage with these artifacts. Each piece took two to three weeks of concentrated painting. It was never just a technical exercise; it was my way of honoring the immense skill of the original masters. As I documented every patina, every casting flaw, and each deliberate line of the lost-wax process, I was trying to acknowledge their mastery, to bridge the distance between bronze and watercolor, and to offer a fresh, light-filled perspective on their living spirit. Bringing these works back to Belgrade and to the Afro Festival at the Museum of African Art (MAU) also became a way of reflecting on how African heritage is seen and valued in Europe today, and of quietly questioning those narratives.

A Legacy of Excellence

While my work has been recognised by the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours (RI) and the Royal Watercolours Society (RWS), my technical approach remains entirely my own. This specific watercolor method was forged through sustained, immersive observation of the Benin artworks at the British Museum. It was in the presence of these masterpieces that my personal technique chrystallized.