Premio Combat Prize

About my artworkMy artwork itegrates both line and colour.The line is located more in the sphere of intellect, the colour in the sphere of emotions, as already discovered by Matisse. The drawing and the colour have symbolic signification, hence an abstract artwork can also be narrative.My artworks are essentially beings, human beings in symbolic sense, with all of the essential existential significations.The drawing is actually the presence of a human which is being presented in a precise plan as well as in colour strokes, gestures.The drawing is extending itself beyond its borders and completes ifself (or not) in the act of painting (a painting). The drawing is also a perspective and an integration of a painting in its incompletion, inconclusiveness in a broad context and in anticipation of dialogue with a spectator.My artwork does not in any way refer to the usual consumer mentality of today, the search for private profits and material gain.I am searching for the presence of a human and his spiritual culture in his primary and nobler sense. Tanja ŠpenkoTanja Špenko was born on July, 1956 in Ljubljana. Graduated with Prof. Štefan Planinc from the Dept. of Painting, Academy of Fine Arts, Ljubljana, in 1979.First exhibition in 1979, a three artists group exhibition in the ŠKUC (Student Cultural Centre) gallery in Ljubljana; since then participated in numerous group exhibitions at home and abroad.Since the first independent exhibition in 1981 in the Hall of the Institute Jožef Stefan in Ljubljana, she has so far presented her work at more than 30 independent exhibitions in Slovenia and elsewhere, among them: Bežigrajska galerija, Ljubljana, 1984; Klub Collegium Artisticum, Sarajevo (Bosnia and Herzegovina),1985; Galerija ZDSLU (Association of Slovene Artists’ Societies), Ljubljana, 1991; exhibition salon Rotovž, Maribor and Art Salon , Celje, 1994; Galerija Equrna, Ljubljana, 1997; Muzej grada Zagreba (Zagreb City Museum), Zagreb (Croatia), 1998; Mestna Galerija Piran (Piran Municipal Gallery), 2001; Galerija Božidar Jakac (in the former monastery church) at Kostanjevica na Krki/upon the Krka, 2005; and the Gallery A+A in Venice (Italy), 2008.In 2007 she created a cycle of silkscreen prints for a print folder, and a cycle of smaller prints for the bibliophile monograph titled In-between, as illustrations of poems by Andrej Medved (printed by Slavko Pavlin, Mednarodni grafični likovni center Ljubljana/International Centre of Graphic Arts).Her works of art are situated in the collection of Modern Gallery Ljubljana, Maribor Art Gallery, Coastal galleries Piran and elsewhere.She is a member of the Association of Slovene Artists’ Societies. She works as a painter and art teacher, and lives in Ljubljana.Awards:1984 – Zlata ptica ( Golden Bird), Ljubljana1987 – Purchase award, Volosko 87, Croatia1989 – Diploma, Volosko 89, Croatia1989 - Diploma Raciborz 96, Poland 2002 – Award nomination 2002, Museum Florean, Romania2003 – Award nomination 2003, Museum Florean, Romania2005 – Special recognition award, II. Ex-tempore, Kamnik 2010 – Recognition for exceptional contribution, Transgenerations 2010, Ljubljana2011 – Grand Prix, International Ex-tempore Ptuj, Carnival 20112012 – 2nd award, International exhibition of miniature 2012, Sremčica, Belgrade, Serbia2013 – Special recognition award of expert jury, International Ex-tempore Ptuj, Carnival 2013, Ptuj