Velimir Vukičević

Ceramicist

Creating illusions in porcelain

Velimir grew up in former Yugoslavia
He specialises in wheel throwing, slip casting and slab building
He creates trompe l'oeil decorations on his porcelain works

Velimir Vukičević studied ceramics at university in Belgrade, then Yugoslavia, before starting work as a freelance artist. He later become professor of ceramic sculpture at the Art University of Belgrade. However, on moving to Switzerland, he faced a turning point in his work. Demand wasn’t very strong for his traditional Serbian designs, so Velimir began a creative process to find a new design path. “It was an important change, and not an easy one, since change doesn’t come suddenly,” he says. Through his work, Velimir now attempts to master the illusion of trompe-l'oeil and explores the relationship between shape and colour.

Interview

How did you begin studying ceramics?: I passed the examinations for ceramics, which were very competitive, unlike now. Yugoslavia was a communist country. There were only state universities and it was very difficult to get a place. The ceramics department was very small, they had five places but 50 students who wanted to study.
Do you specialise in a specific kind of ceramics?: I almost only work with porcelain. Lately, I have been using a lot of slip casting, which I then decorate in different ways. I almost don’t use glaze at all, instead I use a lot of coloured slip. I colour the slip-cast porcelain with pigments that I make myself.
What do you love most about what you do?: I like the creative part the most. You have to fight with the form to make it, because sometimes I have the impression that the form wants to become what it wants and I want something else. When I feel that I have made it as I want, I start to decorate my work.
How did you develop your particular style?: Talent is like a muscle, if you don’t exercise it then you get fat! It’s the same for an artwork really. I don’t stop, I really work every day. Most inspiration comes from both outside and inside. What you have inside you and what you see around you.

Velimir Vukičević is a master artisan: he began his career in 1976 and he started teaching in 1990