Illustrator Vedran Klemens left his hometown, the wartime Sarajevo, two months prior to the end of the siege. They could not even imagine that the war will be ended with a truce soon.
He was 16. The only drawing of his that he took with him in a book from graphics when leaving the besieged city with his mom through a tunnel shows Vučko on skis. That drawing from 1984 is now framed and Vedran proudly keeps it in his apartment in the center of Zagreb, along with his other works and an oriental Bosnian coffee set.
Vedran finished the design studies and Academy of Arts, Department of Painting, but he found himself in illustrating and graphic design. On a wall in his apartment is also a classical guitar which he plays when he is alone or with good friends.
Vedran now visits his mother, family and friends in Sarajevo, but in Croatia he already has an established freelance job – he illustrates all kinds of things. We created imaginary characters for the jubilee edition of “Stories from once upon a time”, packages for several drinks, cigarettes. He received several awards and he is also preparing an exhibition in Zagreb.
Last year, Vedran made a series of graphics titled “Vučko and friends” which he showed at the festival “Pop-Up Sarajevo”. It was a dedication to his favorite character from childhood and the reason why he started drawing in the first place.
“Vučko is the star of the former Yugoslavia, the official mascot of the Olympic Games in Sarajevo in 1984. When I was little, I loved his character and I drew him all the time. That was the first time in my life when I wanted to become an illustrator, so that I can draw characters like Vučko,” Vedran says.
“Vučko and friends” is a limited series of hand printed and signed graphics with motives of imaginary adventures of Vučko and his friends. The first drawing from the series illustrates a conversation between Vučko, Zagi and Batman. Vučko and Zagi yell at Batman for not coming to save them in 1991, and Batman explains them how he was flirting with Smurfette.
“Vučko represents my childhood, the Olympics, Sarajevo and growing up. It brings many positive associations,” Vedran says. Zagi represents the other city that he is very fond of, Zagreb, and Batman is his favorite hero from movies and comics.
Characters and their adventures on Vedran’s graphics are often provocative, using language of the street, but messages are always against the war, human stupidity, and positive.
(Source: radiosarajevo.ba)
