Alexander Adams

Immersed in Poetry

In the exhibition ‘Immersed in Poetry’, Tijana Titin exhibits around 30 middle-sized and large
paintings that come from the last two years. In the works, one can see the artist’s organic
development of style and painterly manner. Originally influenced by Baroque and Renaissance
painting, it wouldn’t be an over-fetched statement to say that her paintings carry this traditional
sublime aura into the modern world. Instantly reminding of the exquisite ceiling paintings, her works
transmit the inherent magnificence of old Masters to the present day. Born in Serbia and living in
Berlin since late 2006, after she received her stipend to study at the UDK with Professor Held, the
painter has developed a unique style that brings together the best from a wide trajectory of more than
500 years of art history.

Titin is a visual poet and storyteller. ‘Immersed in Poetry’ only came as a natural title for the show
and the series of new paintings that introduce a more unique, abstract style. Interchangeable moving
between energy and calmness, slow and quick motion, circular brushstrokes and bold lines, Titin
composes bodyscapes that blur the boundaries between figuration and abstraction. Her paintings are
psychological manifestations of inner conflict where tension and serenity enter a new way of co-
existence, learning to accept each other, a challenge that Titin has solved by allowing both sides to
blend and melt into each other. Titin sees her painting as an act of poetry; using colours as words and
the canvas as the paper, she composes visual narratives that are only to be deciphered by close
observation.

Titin uses a variety of techniques for her paintings with oil painting at its core - sometimes she is
using the floor as her painting stage which shapes the perspective in different directions. Offering the
possibility to paint from all sides toward each other allows the artist to develop a 360-degree
perspective that further enhances the immersive sensation. No matter how one chooses to observe
and navigate them, from left to right or from top to bottom, one always discovers something new, a
microcosm of subconscious thoughts and innuendos, stretching on and beyond the canvas. The sizes
and formats of the canvases further amplify the impact by allowing both the monumental and the
detailed to surface and claim their space.

In Ever-rising Waters, we feel immersed in a cosmic-like depiction of energy, as if we are directly
staring at the middle of the universe. Water-like blue elements mixed with earthly pink elements
open new doors for the unexpected, the spontaneous but also the coherent and meticulous.
In Beneath the Light, figuration forms the basis for the work and leads the way to new paths. The
figures staple up layer after layer to create an inner rhythm and dynamic identity of the painting. The
figurative elements start iterating from the two diagonally opposite sides of the canvas only to meet
in the middle and break any dichotomies that separated them.
In the diptych Insomnia Swirls, semi-covered figures are seen jumping from one side of the canvas to
the other to engage in a heavenly banquet of festivities. The essence of her work is to be seen most
clearly: the illusion of being able to make a linear approach and interpretation of the work is
discarded and replaced by total artistic freedom. The viewer is invited to become part of the artistic
process.

Vanessa Souli, April 2023.