Ivana Svjetličić is a contemporary artist and self-taught painter whose visual expression is based on intuitive painting, strong color use, and emotional expression. Her work is characterized by a free, spontaneous approach to painting, where color becomes the primary carrier of emotion, energy, and inner states. Through abstract and semi-abstract compositions, she explores themes of transformation, healing, personal growth, and human vulnerability, creating works that balance emotional depth with visual strength.
She began her artistic journey in late 2019, after experiencing a significant personal trauma and the loss of her father. It is through art that she found a way to express emotions, inner states, and processes of personal transformation.
After attending a pencil drawing course, she quickly realized that her true artistic expression lies in color. Without formal mentorship, she began developing her own intuitive style, recognizable for its strong color palette, free form, and pronounced emotional energy.
With only four completed paintings published on Instagram, she was discovered and contacted by the international Van Der Plas Gallery from New York, which invited her to exhibit at the group exhibition “The Key of Dreams” in March 2022 in Manhattan.
Three months after her first exhibition, her painting “Kolorita” was selected among the 60 best works for the annual exhibition “Wide Open 12” at BWAC Gallery in Brooklyn, New York.
In September 2022, she participated in the “Digital Out Of Home Advertising Campaign” in collaboration with Plogix Gallery. Her works, along with those of 25 selected artists, were displayed on digital screens in shopping malls, restaurants, airports, and city squares in New York, Miami, Los Angeles, London, and Paris.
In February 2023, she exhibited her works “Awakened” and “Mother” at the group exhibition “Reveries” at Galeria Azur in Madrid.
In September 2023, she held her solo exhibition “Shapes and Colors That Makes You Feel Better” at LittleField Gallery in Brooklyn, New York.
Later that same month, she presented her works as the only featured artist at the “Asa Dalmatia Drive” event, alongside some of the world’s most luxurious cars, in collaboration with Auto Sport Adria at the Auto Benussi showroom.
In March 2024, she participated in the “Exclusive Art Fair” at Family Mall, where she also presented a line of unique umbrellas created in collaboration with the brand Hrvatski kišobran, featuring visuals of her original artworks.
In May 2024, she held her first solo exhibition in Croatia titled “World of Colors” at the Marincel estate in Zagreb. In the same month, she also participated in the “Koi & Bonsai Show” at Family Mall, where she was the only artist exhibiting her works and art-inspired products, including umbrellas, prints, 3D wooden graphics, furniture, and unique magnets.
Later that year, she collaborated with the award-winning French duo Obradović-Tixier Duo, creating an original painting for the cover of their album “Jiggled Juggler.”
During the same period, she signed a contract with the New York gallery Artifact Projects for the project “Continuity: Modern and Contemporary Masters,” where her works were exhibited alongside those of great masters such as Picasso, Matisse, and Miró. The exhibition was covered by leading American media, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Newsday, and The Daily News.
In June 2025, her artistic journey became part of an educational project—students of an elementary school in Vitez studied her work through the eTwinning project “In the World of Visual Artists” and selected her as Croatia’s representative among world-renowned artists.
In August 2025, in collaboration with Rab Community College and Hotel Valamar, she held the exhibition “Light in the Corners” at the Imperial Heritage Hotel on the island of Rab. In the same month, she opened the Star Film Festival in Sisak with the exhibition “Inner Face.”
In September 2025, she opened her own art gallery in the heart of Zagreb, in Radićeva Street, attracting a large number of visitors and significant public attention.
In October 2025, she participated in the “Inspirational Wednesday” project, where she inspired young people through a lecture at her gallery to follow their dreams and believe in their own path.
At the beginning of 2026, she expanded her gallery to a larger and more prominent space at Radićeva 37 in Zagreb.
Currently, in collaboration with American manager Blerim Rogova, she is working on a project to open her own gallery in a prestigious location on Bleecker Street in Manhattan, New York.
In February 2026, Ivana held an art class at the elementary school she attended as a child. The goal of the project was freedom of expression, and the theme was a colorful butterfly, which the students painted in the way they saw it, in colors.
In May, Ivana exhibited her artwork at the Gala Evening of the Rotary Club Zagreb Zrinjevac as part of the club’s 15th anniversary at the Sheraton, where a special audience gathered, primarily art lovers.
