Zabok mural-day 1.

 

Finally, the new season of painting outdoors has arrived.

This is a cropped image of the first day's progress.

I'm trying a different approach this time by doing an underpainting and solving the light and shapes monochromatically first ( because I have more time than usual to finish).

The mural is organized by Pučko Otvoreno Učilište-Zabok, and the wall is on the building of the Regeneracija factory.

More details in the upcoming weeks ;)

Prints

I managed to find high-res photos of some older works for the new print editions.

For now, here are three available new prints for order via email: lonac.pot@gmail.com

For all the prices, check the website: LONAC

 

I didn't want to do a release date / online event for the now available prints since it's mostly "older" reproduced works. Once I start working on a new series of murals and studio works, there will be a release date for every future print and a limited time to purchase it for a special price.

Since I'm writing about printmaking, it's good to mention my old ( not used much, so basically new) printing press for woodcut and intaglio that's been quietly waiting for me to clean it up and fall in love with it again... 

Well, I also finally managed to find out some new techniques for transferring digital sketches on a board or a lino, so the plan for this winter is set. 💪

NEWS

 It's been a while 🙈

One month from now, a new season of painting projects starts. Once all dates are set, I'll write all the cities and festivals here and on my website.

I've been busy with some winter commission work and enjoyed doing digital work on my iPad in between those jobs. Also did some woodworking for my studio. My hope for this year is to go back to the rhythm I had back in 2019 but film all the travels and my painting process even more. 

Stay tuned ;)

"FLEGMA"

10/12 YEARS celebration PRINTS

I posted about making art prints for my blog's 10th anniversary a few months ago.

The plan was to do it two years ago, but with all that was happening, I figured it would be better to do it this year. The prints are reproductions of some of my favorite earlier works, both from the streets and studio. 

It has been twelve years since I started posting my works on this blog, and even though nowadays, the blog is seen as old-school and not many people use it, I'm enjoying posting here more than on other platforms. 

But there's another 10th anniversary, and that one is this year (realized that a few days ago)

My first painting experience outside my own country was back in 2012, and since then, I have had the privilege to travel all around the globe, paint some huge walls, and meet so many great people. 

I will post more photos of the available prints in the upcoming months. Some will be limited editions, and others will be open editions.

 Few details on the paper: Premium Fine Art Smooth paper, a3 and a4 formats, cotton matte, 310gsm, 0.42 mm. For orders, more information, and questions: lonac.pot@gmail.com or write me on IG.

"Medika Diving"
Limited edition of 50 prints ( AP on the photo)
a3 format
Premium Fine Art Rough paper
310 gsm, 0.42 mm

"Companion"
Limited edition of 50 prints ( AP on the photo)
A3 format, Premium Fine Art Smooth paper
310 gsm, 0.42 mm

"Companion"
Limited edition of 70 prints ( AP on the photo)
A4 format, Premium Fine Art Smooth paper
310 gsm, 0.42 mm

"Friend"
Limited edition of 50 prints ( AP on the photo)
A3 format, Premium Fine Art Smooth paper
310 gsm, 0.42 mm

"Friend"
Limited edition of 70 prints ( AP on the photo)
A4 format, Premium Fine Art Smooth paper
310 gsm, 0.42 mm

"Heartbeat"
Limited edition of 30 prints ( AP on the photo)
29 x 31 cm
Premium Fine Art Smooth paper
310 gsm, 0.42 mm

"Heartbeat"
Limited edition of 30 prints ( AP on the photo)
20.5 x 21.5 cm
Premium Fine Art Smooth paper
310 gsm, 0.42 mm

"Where is Batman"
Limited edition of 50 prints ( AP on the photo)
A3 format, Premium Fine Art Rough paper
310 gsm, 0.42 mm

"Where is Batman"
Limited edition of 70 prints ( AP on the photo)
A4 format, Premium Fine Art Rough paper
310 gsm, 0.42 mm

 

Seoul impressions

I finally managed to finish the video from my trip to Seoul, South Korea.

This is the tenth year that I've been traveling and painting around the globe, and for the first time in a while, I had the opportunity to stay longer and be a tourist :D.

 

It makes me really happy to share this beautiful experience in the five minutes vlog, and I hope you will enjoy watching as much as I did while editing and filming :)

home

 

                                                            Almost there, not quite, but yeah.

                                              Finally painting something big in my hometown  

                                                               (only brushes and rollers)

                                           OKOLO // around   UpRent najam radnih platformi

I'm still late with posting some projects from last month, so next week I'll start with those before sharing the process video of this one.

Fine art prints

In 2020, around this time, it was my blog's tenth anniversary. It's a platform where I posted for the longest. I planned to make several fine art print editions with some of my dearests works for that occasion, but then shit happened. Finally, owning a suitable machine to produce all the prints in my studio, that plan is being realized. Once the paper arrives, I will share the first prints available for order.

(prints of murals, paintings, and drawings).
If you already have some of your favorites that you want to own as a signed print, feel free to contact me :)

Urban Break-

 

I am working on a painting for a group show in Seoul, South Korea.

There are some crazy names on the list of artists for this event, so I will post more details soon...really excited about this show.

The composition/concept for the painting is the one from last year, but since I wasn't so happy with the result the first time, I felt some changes should be made. I plan to do more of this type of work which is a bit more personal than some previous ones and also leans on a moodier side.

one more thing:

Finally, my studio now has a brand new professional printer for art prints, so in a month or so, signed prints will be available for purchase. 

If you already have some of the favorites ( murals, drawings, paintings) that you would like to own as a signed print, feel free to write me.

sketchbook pages on the wall

It's been a while since the last post, so here is something from the studio: older studies and newer works are awaiting finishing. Much more to do and many more pieces to come.

"HYPOCRITE"

Mural painted at @xstaticfestival in Split, Croatia. Big thank you to the city of Split and to @senkzzzone for having me and for trusting me with such a big wall.

photos by Petra Milovac and Lonac

"MORNINGS"

In a day or two, I will write a few words about this work. 

Just need to rest and prepare for a wall twice the size of this one :D

Until then, enjoy my new process video

Inside the studio

 

Here is a short new video from inside the studio. I've been editing this one on my iPad pro and had a blast doing it. 

This video might be my favorite so far, and editing on my tablet made it much easier for some reason. Some crazy good apps out there, I must say :)

Instagram account

 

Edited

It took about a week or so to get in contact with the FB crew to save my hacked Instagram account. Thnx to Ben Slow, a fellow artist from the UK who also had the same situation that happened to him last year. Luckily, I was helped by a girl that also saved his account. 

The original account is back, and the new one I opened almost two weeks ago will be renamed and used to promote fellow artists. 

           whenever shit happens, crack a joke

thnx

Hi there.

Now and then, I check the blog statistics and get surprised by how many of you still come to this blog, so the reason for writing this post is to say THANK YOU.

Thank you for showing interest in my work; I promise I'll be back soon.

This part is edited, but unfortunately, I must inform you that my Facebook and Instagram were hacked. I managed to save the Facebook page, but for now, it seems that the Instagram account is fucked....oh well...

Cheers

Lonac

Procreate drawings

 

I started drawing and painting digitally, mainly in Procreate. This is a fantastic "workout," and lately, I've been doing it every day. I will post some more studies in a week or so.

"Kulturno Uzdizanje"/ "Cultural Upliftment"

I was invited to the city of Zadar to paint a mural on this abandoned building connected to another old, devastated, and much bigger building. That bigger one is currently in the process of renovation, and hopefully, next year will be completed and turned into a cultural center for youth. Parallel to the painted wall, you can find an indoor skatepark-Menza, a part of a squat named Neverland. I decided to use the name of the squat as an inspiration or the central theme and connect that with the current events (regarding cultural centers and culture in general) in Croatia. In my hometown of Zagreb, there is less and less of this type of places, and many more abandoned buildings are wasted away. In the past few years, especially in this one, Zagreb lost some of the most popular and historical places where many of our music icons started to grow. Maybe I'm trying to say "Kudos to Zadar" for building something more valuable than fountains or some overpriced gondola lifts.

As I was painting this mural, I had some people asking me why I painted people like they were hanged or high on drugs. I hope that with the text above, I explained the idea behind the mural. Thinking about some of those comments and interpretations, I guess it's safe to conclude that without culture, your youth might end up the way some folks saw it: wasted. 

"Polupani Lončići"

Mural painted at Lauba, Zagreb, 2020.

“Polupani Lončići” In Croatian, that would mean something like smashed or broken pots. This phrase would be used in our childhood game known as hide and seek. During the game, if you saw someone snitching, not counting correctly, calling out the wrong name, pretending to have not been seen and called out, simply cheating, or in other words, not playing by the rules, you or some of your playmates would have to yell "POLUPANI LONČIĆI"

The phrase would symbolize the end of the unfair or crooked game. It would also mean a reset, a new start for a fair and just game.

I also started filming and editing my own painting process, so here is my first ever "serious" video.

Subscribe to the channel for more future videos, from now on I'll try to do this for every project.

2020

Finally, back to painting walls.

This is just half of the wall I started painting today at Lauba in Zagreb.

I've also started another wall with my buddy Chez at another location.

some other news:

A month ago, I got an invitation to take over the Paint Guide Instagram profile in June. I'll be posting daily about various artists that inspired me. Take over will last five days, as usual, posting several posts daily with lots of images and texts. This is a huge honor and a privilege I won't take for granted, so I'm already starting with preparations. 

PAINTGUIDE

WEBSITE

After ten years of posting here, on Facebook and Instagram, I finally took the time to create my website.

Having posted a lot of works on different platforms, it seemed unnecessary to upload all of them on this new website. 

This blog will still be where I'll post all the works with more details and texts.

Fell free to check it out: LONAC

studio atmosphere

I have wanted to write a bit about this blog, my work, progress, and different direction for some time now.

Last year was kind of rough. I had some crazy bad experiences with a few festivals, which made me rethink all this "street art" thing. It inspired me to reflect on all I've done to this point and where my focus should be going forward.

This doesn't mean I will stop painting murals at the festivals or in general.

Not being placed in a specific box and avoiding labels has always been why I loved painting outside. If I wanted to do a more realistic or illustrative piece or try something different, no one was there to say, "Hi, but that's not what we know you for, so don't do that. Do what we like". Usually, that is what galleries do, but more and more organizations have this kind of approach in the "urban art scene." I want to point out that my experiences with galleries in the past two years were only positive. Many "street art" projects are funded by the city and might have deals with tourist agencies, so sometimes, the mural artist becomes a hand for their propaganda. Not always, but on some occasions. It is a good thing that people have embraced this type of art, and now it is easier than ever to paint a big wall, not worrying about prejudice and being accused of destruction of property (even if you had permission to paint). Mural festivals can hardly work without sponsors, and the more money a particular project has, the higher quality it gets. At least that is how it should be, and I have nothing against that. Many people involved in this type of organization are my friends, and I know how hard it is to get something started and how much effort it takes to organize a big event.

I think the people invited to a particular project are not there to please the sponsors or make a tourist commercial for the city. That becomes a commercial/ commission job that costs much more than the fee for doing "your own thing."

My own thing:

Looking at some earlier works, I can see many bad decisions, compromises, and not the best approaches, but I'm happy they were made. After all, "More is lost by indecision than wrong decision," as Cicero so eloquently put it a long time ago.

Lately, I'm spending my time in my studio working with oil, gouache, and aquarelle so that I can completely transit from spray to brushes. No, that doesn't mean I will stop painting with spray or change what I do. I want to expand my skill set so I can work more freely without relying on just one medium (and its quantity), especially if I'm painting outside my hometown.

I'm also interested in developing/ exploring different palettes, working on my brushstrokes, and avoiding total rendering. It is much easier to render and make smooth transitions with spray, but if the whole piece is like that, it can look dull. It is also fun to try new mediums and see where they take me. Repeating the same trick dumps me and makes me not want to paint anymore.

I could continue writing this part, but I'd leave the future works to speak on their own.

In future posts, I would like to write a bit about influences ( adopted art parents and inspirations and a shout-out to some contemporary artists whose works make me continue to work and evolve.

Seeing this type of text might seem unusual, but I just had to throw it out. Having it, all written here will make me work more and stand my ground if situations similar to those from the last year occur. Let's hope they won't.

Peeling off layers of bad influences and mistakes can hurt, making more room for healthier growth.

European Central Bank Art Collection

 Drawings from “Gerascophobia” series exhibited at European Central Bank will soon be a part of their art collection. It was a huge honor for me to be a part of a group exhibition of Croatian contemporary art in ECB, and this is something that I didn’t expect.