Vladimir Lalić is a multidisciplinary artist whose practice spans painting, sculpture, drawing, and large-scale multimedia installations.
With a career deeply rooted in exploring the intersection of human emotion, migration, and transformation, Vladimir’s work often mythologizes human and animal forms, creating imagined species and characters that reflect on complex social constructs.
Born in former Yugoslavia, Vladimir’s early experiences of war and displacement profoundly influenced his perspective on identity and the concept of ‘being.’ Studying in post-civil-war Yugoslavia, a territory endlessly vibrating from disintegration, he found refuge in the disciplined processes of art-making and opera singing. As the only artistic child in a family of engineers, Vladimir reflects, “We all drew as children, but I never stopped.” Art and music became his ways of communicating with the world.
Now based in London, Vladimir brings his personal journey as a migrant into his art, using themes of resilience, adaptation, and coexistence to forge connections between the personal and the universal. Having arrived in the UK two and a half years ago, he faced significant challenges, including being denied a tourist visa before later being granted a prestigious Global Talent visa for his contributions to the arts. This journey has inspired him to examine themes of migration, acceptance, and the value of diversity, which were sometimes lacking in his upbringing and what he longed for in his homeland.
Vladimir’s recent works often incorporate whimsical humour, myth, and storytelling, aiming to provoke thought and dialogue. For this project, Vladimir’s concept centres on a species of imagined creatures symbolizing the transformative power of migration. These creatures are inspired by both the mass migrations caused by the breakup of Yugoslavia and natural phenomena like Cvetanje Tise (the blooming of the Tisa River). This spectacle of mayfly emergence represents fleeting beauty, resilience, and the interconnectedness of ecosystems. The creatures in Vladimir’s concept reflect the vital role of movement and integration in enriching ecosystems—both natural and cultural.
With a background that includes extensive experience as an opera singer and performer, Vladimir’s creative practice is a unique blend of traditional craftsmanship and contemporary innovation. He creates immersive works that challenge perceptions, celebrate transformation, and highlight the resilience of the human spirit.
Digital collage, bones, feathers, old furniture, drawings, audio - dimensions variable - 2023
Ink and acrylic on plexiglass -LED, cables, controller - 100 x 70cm x 7cm - 2022
Ink on plexiglass, audio, vocal performance- dimensions variable - 2020
Ink and acrylic on plexiglass, audio, microphone holders, speakers, stage, performance - 11x12m -2020
Highlights
Award
2023 Curators Choice Award – “When walls are bare”, Gallery 46, London, United Kingdom
2023 Award for best work – “Grafix” open call, Belgrade, Serbia
2017 Award “Paul-Louis Weiller” – for painting (Académie des beaux-arts), Paris, France
2017 Special Jury’s Award – LYNX Art Prize, Trieste, Italy
2017 Finalist – Award “Antoine Marin”, Paris, France
2015 Award – 48th Winter Salon, Herceg Novi, Montenegro
2013 Laureate Award for Drawing – Vladimir Velickovic’s Fund, Belgrade, Serbia
2011 Faculty of Pedagogy Award – International Biennial of Dry Point, Užice, Serbia
2008 Merit Mention – II Exhibition of Nude, Sdabac, Serbia
2007 “Mihailo S. Petrov” Award – Best Student Work – Print, Belgrade, Serbia
Solo Exhibitions
2022 “Frontiers of Decrepitude” – November Gallery, Belgrade, Serbia
2022 “Zverje i paperje” (Beast and Feather) – Banski Dvor, Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina
2020 “Sediments and Sentiments” – Belgrade City Museum, Belgrade, Serbia
2020 “You See Through Me” – Svilara, Novi Sad, Serbia
2019 “Divulgation” – MKC, Skopje, Macedonia
2018 “Divulgation” – Gallery Boris, Paris, France
2017 Drawings – Gallery Eric Gizard, Paris, France
2016 “Memorabilia” – Aquarelles – Gallery Art for All, Belgrade, Serbia
2016 Drawings 2013-2016 – Josip Bepo Benković, Herceg Novi, Montenegro
2015 Drawings – Gallery Art55, Niš, Serbia
2015 “Re-membrance” – Collages – University Library “Svetozar Marković,” Belgrade, Serbia
2015 “Introspection” – Gallery of Modern Art, Pančevo, Serbia
2014 “Laureates for Drawing Award from the Vladimir Velickovic Fund” – Gallery Chaos, Belgrade, Serbia
2014 “Deformiterra” – Works on Paper – Zečević Gallery, Belgrade, Serbia
2014 “Au Dedans et Au-delà” – Drawings – Lo Gallery, Paris, France
2014 “Beyond Within” – Drawings – Gallery Chaos, Belgrade, Serbia
2013 “Drawings and Prints” – Serbian Cultural Centre, Paris, France
2013 “Transfiguration” – Prints – Gallery SKC, Belgrade, Serbia
2012 “Prints” – Gallery Le Cerisier, Paris, France
2011 “Ovoid” – Prints and Drawings – Gallery SKC, Belgrade, Serbia
2011 Gallery of Modern Art – Smederevo, Serbia
2010 Cultural Centre, Student City – Grand Gallery – Belgrade, Serbia
2010 Gallery UDAS – Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina
2008 Student Cultural Centre – Kragujevac, Serbia
Group Exhibitions
2024 “Prelude in Asylum” – Asylum Chapel, London, United Kingdom
2024 “Dumping Ground” – Hypha Headquarters Euston, London, United Kingdom
2024 “Relentless pursuit” – Goldsmiths University of Art, London, United Kingdom
2023 “Beauty of big formats” – Salon of Belgrade City Museum, Belgrade, Serbia
2023 “Burning desire” – Danuser & Ramirez Gallery, London, United Kingdom
2023 “When walls are bare” – Gallery 46, London, United Kingdom
2023 “Taste the difference” – Hypha Studios, London, United Kingdom
2022 Impact 12 – Centre for Print Research, Bristol, United Kingdom
2021 LANIAKEA #1 /drawing session/ – Espace Alfred Boucher, La Ruche, Paris, France
2020 RWA 168 Annual Open Exhibition – Royal West of England Academy Gallery, Bristol, United Kingdom
2019 “Tropical Lab” – Lassale Gallery, Singapore
2018 Group Show – Onishi Gallery, New York, USA
2017 “Glue Heads” – U10 Gallery, Belgrade, Serbia
2017 Prix Antoine Marin – Galerie Julio Gonzales, Paris, France
2016 “Line” – Kulturforum, Kosara Boksan & Petar Omcikus Foundation, Belgrade, Serbia
2015 48th Winter Salon – Herceg Novi, Montenegro
2014 Le Chêne – Centre de Création, Paris, France
2013 International Biennial of Modern Graphic Art BIECTR – Trois-Rivières, Canada
2012 International Biennial of Graphic Art in Bitola – Cultural Centre, Bitola, Macedonia
2011 X International Graphic Art Biennial of Dry Point – City Gallery, Užice, Serbia
2010 XXIII Barski Ljetopis – Gallery of Velimir A. Leković, Bar, Montenegro
2010 Modern Gallery – Mrkonjić City, Bosnia & Herzegovina
2009 IX International Graphic Art Biennial of Dry Point – City Gallery, Užice, Serbia
2008 VI Biennial of Applied and Fine Art – Smederevo, Serbia
2007 I Biennial of Original Drawing – Pančevo, Serbia
2005 XIII Biennial of Serbian and Montenegro’s Students Drawing – Belgrade, Serbia
Residencies
2019 Tropical Lab – Singapore
2012/16/18 Cité internationale des arts – Paris, France
Press
2024 Time Out Magazine, August 30 – Dumping Ground Exhibition Review by Eddy Frankel
2022 Harper’s Bazaar, Review/Interview, April – Visit the exhibition “Limits of Dilapidation” by Vladimir Lalić
2022 Original Magazin, Interview, May – Vladimir Lalić: The Pursuit of False Beauty Leads to Ultimate Ugliness
2022 Objektiv – Interview
2022 Portal Refresh Your Life, May – Exhibition Review: Art That Moves
2022 SeeCult, Portal for Culture of Southeast Europe, August, Interview – Vladimir Lalić: Knowing Yourself Within the Dark. Dark Room Project
2021 Morning Weekend Show – In Atelier with Vladimir Lalić: Perspective of the Broken Mirror (Radio Interview)
2021 Serbian National Radio, June
2021 Danas Magazine, Review, November – Vladimir Lalić: Evolutionarily We Become Like the Insects
2021 Serbian National Television, May – “Limits of Wear and Tear”: Review of Exhibition in Gallery November
2020 Serbian National Television, Culture Magazine, November – Exhibition in Belgrade City Museum: Sediments and Sentiments
2020 Guest of Cultural National News
2020 Portal Sputnik, Interview, November – Vladimir Lalić – An Artist Who Scans Reality (Video)
2020 Portal Nova.rs, Interview, November – Lalić: The Question Is How Much Longer We Artists Can Endure
2020 Grazia Croatia, Interview, November – The Great Success of the Young Academic Artist Vladimir Lalić
2020 Kaleidoscope of Culture, Exhibition Announcement, August – Novi Sad as the European Capital of Culture
2020 European Capital of Culture, October, Exhibition Announcement/Review – Vladimir Lalić: We Turn to Culture When It’s Hardest
2020 Brainz Art, January, Interview – Vladimir Lalić, “Adhesive States” Exhibition
2020 Novosti Newspapers
2020 Nova.rs Portal/Daily, July, Interview – Vladimir Lalić: If I Didn’t Create, I Would Be a Much Worse Person
2019 Serbian National Television, Culture Magazine, November – Vladimir Lalić: Faithful to Pencil, Ink, and Charcoal
2019 SeeCult, Portal for Culture of Southeast Europe, October, Review/Interview – On Exhibition Cohesive States
2018 ELLE Serbia – Vladimir Lalić: Winner of a prestigious painting prize on Paris, success and art
2018 Artension N°152, November/December – Art & Argent
2018 Officiel-galeries-musees
2018 Slash Paris
2017 French Art News Today
2017 Politika Daily, November, Exhibition Review/Interview – A Drawing in One Hand, a Guitar in the Other
2017 Brainz Art, June, Interview
2017 Redbull, Interview
2016 Kurir Magazine