Meri Ljubanovic
Meri Ljubanovic was born in Mt Gambier. After living for many years in the Western District on a farm, she now lives in central Geelong – a far cry from her rural background.
Her first experience of painting was in Portland many years ago and this encouraged a long term love of art of all kinds.
Meri has studied with Ross Patterson, Amanda Hyatt, Charles Moodie and has painted with Robyn Kittelty Redman for the last few years.
Meri’s paintings are contemporary modern and fresh. They range between impressionist and expressionist with much abstract work included.
Although incorporating nature in an abstract sense in many of her works, she is also fond of using quirky and whimsical animals and painting what surrounds her in the garden. Her fresh approach is achieved through spontaneous creativity together with pretty much a reckless abandon for the rules or expectations of the art world—she paints purely for pleasure.
Many of her art pieces are created with acrylic paints where watercolours and pigments are applied to wood panels and to canvasses and often completed with a resin coat. Meri finds working in multi medium irresistible and enjoys the challenge of working in this way. She enjoys the resin finish which intensifies the vibrancy of the mediums she uses.
Her art seems to look like it’s floating in a sea of liquid magic and in many ways resin gives the effect of a more contemporary and dramatic ‘look’ or glow to the finished product. She marvels at the capriciousness and unpredictable reactions of the acrylic paints combining with the resin coat. The resin coating in turn results in gorgeous colours yet maintains a transulucency and vibrancy which is wonderful in its own right.
Meri is successfully exhibiting in galleries along the Surf Coast and in Healesville as well as Geelong galleries and her colourful and joyful work is becoming well known.