Žarko Jakimovski (Skopje, 1948) is one of the most important contemporary Macedonian artists. His oeuvre, created over a 50-year career, belongs to the world’s painting heritage, with crossed genes from the eternal achievements of European and world painting – Rembrandt, Vermeer, Theodor Géricault, Henri Matisse, Georges Braque, Picasso, Willem de Kooning – to the medieval masters of fresco painting of Nerezi, Kurbinovo, and Ohrid.
After returning from Ljubljana, where he graduated from the Academy of fine arts in 1974, Jakimovski continued his constant exploration of European art capitals and Macedonian monasteries, drawing on the experience gained from the works of the great masters in search of his expression.
From his study visits to Holland, France, Germany, and Italy, one of the key roles in the formation of his worldview was played by Paris; where, as Jakimovski says, he spent his days with Géricault and his evenings with Picasso. Hence the metaphysical connection with Géricault monumental work „The Raft of the Medusa“, which later emerged as one pillar of his oeuvre.
Jakimovski’s expression is a link between Macedonian traditional iconography and the European classics through baroque, impressionism, and cubism. The drawing represents the artist’s thought process, where the sublime begins in all his artistic masterpieces.
Jakimovski’s handwriting makes any further explanation of his works superfluous – his thoughts are conveyed in every millimeter with a creative precision that reveals the infinite world of personal esoterica to anyone standing in front of one of his paintings.
Žarko Jakimovski has so far realized about twenty solo exhibitions, took part in many group exhibitions, and won significant awards.
Solo exhibitions:
– 1976 – Skopje, Home of Youth, “25 May”.
– 1979 – Skopje, Art Salon of DLUM
– 1980 – Skopje, Museum of Contemporary Art
– Skopje, Art Salon of DLUM
– Vienna, Schottenfeld Gallery
– 1981 – Subotica, Yugoslavia, Art Salon
– Zrenjanin, Yugoslavia
– Ohrid, Hotel Desaret
– 1982 – Subotica, Salon of the Art Meeting
– Zrenjanin (with T. Dimčevski)
– Ohrid, Hotel Desaret
– Stuttgart, Experimentgalerie
– 1986 – Skopje, Writers’ Club
– Stuttgart, National Bank Gallery
– 1988 – Skopje, Art Gallery
– 1993 – Skopje, Salon of DLUM
– 2000 – Skopje, Museum of the City of Skopje
– 2013 – Skopje, Cultural Information Centre
– 2021 – Skopje, Museum of the City of Skopje (retrospective exhibition)– 2022 – Skopje, Art Gallery of MASA (retrospective exhibition)
Awards:
1978, Kliment Ohridski Drawing Award, DLUM, Skopje
1979, “Lazar Ličenoski” Painting Award, DLUM, Skopje
1981, The Award for Drawing of VII Triennial of Yugoslav Drawing, Sombor
1982, „Young Generation IV“ Painting Award, Skopje
1988, Painting Award “Мasters of Nerezi”, DLUM, Skopje
1995, DLUM Grand Prix of the IV Winter Salon, Skopje

Eva Petkovska was born (1999) and grew up in Skopje, and currently lives and works in Ravenna, Italy, where she graduated from the Accademia di Belle Arti di Ravenna.
Her creative sensibility especially responds to the unattainably perfect decorative textures of nature; and is constantly searching for new ways to present a stylized yet truthful representation of the plant world; equally skillfully expressing herself with both traditional and digital techniques.
The artist’s special gift is the atmosphere, which, even when the motif is the most ordinary, erases all traces of triviality from the painting.
In her work, Petkovska often refers to the phenomena of popular culture, where she discovers and refers to the aesthetic pearls that shine in the gray of consumerist logic.
Her drawings, paintings, graphics, illustrations, mosaics, tapestries… have a calming effect on the viewer, like a delicate visual treat.
The combination characteristic of Petkovska: nature, decorative and atmospheric/fairytale, is followed by a long list of favorite artists: we will single out David Hockney, Takashi Murakami, James Jean, David McKean, Junji Ito, Alphonse Mucha, Studio Ghibli, masters of the Byzantine Art.
Eva Petkovska often turns her imagination into sophisticated, unique artisan craftworks – jewelry and other practical and decorative objects – using a variety of techniques and materials.
Participation in exhibitions:
2021 – Ilaria Ciardi Engraving Award, Michele Tosi Gallery, Ravenna, Italy
2019 – King’s Day, Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Skopje
2018 – Annual Exhibition at the DSULUD „Lazar Ličenoski“ Gallery, Skopje
2017 – Mural in honour of Salvador Dali, DSULUD “Lazar Ličenoski”, Skopje

In 2021, he won the prestigious mosaic competition “Illustration of Comedy: Inferno”, which was announced in Ravenna (Italy), the world capital of the mosaic, on the occasion of the 700th anniversary of the death of Dante Alighieri.
A graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts of Ravenna (Accademia di Belle Arti di Ravenna), he studied in Italy as the best student of the generation at the State School of Fine Arts and Design “Lazar Ličenoski” from Skopje.
He was the star of the celebration of the national holiday of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, King’s Day, in Skopje, 2019, where he made the last moves of his reproduction of Rembrandt’s “Sacrifice of Isaac”.
In his work, he explores the metaphysical background of the problems of Western civilization; and with an exceptional gift for conceptualization and symbolism, consistent with the artistic skills by which he stands out even among his best colleagues, he actualizes timeless, existential rhetorical questions.
Stojanovski excels in everything he does in his multidisciplinary practice; whether it is drawing, printmaking, painting, mosaic, sculpture, or installation.
Pablo Picasso, Andrei Rublev, Alberto Giacometti, Umberto Boccioni, William Turner and Dario Mellone are named as influences.
Exhibitions and awards:
2023 – Solo exhibition, Vernice Art Fair, Forlì, Italy
2022 – International engraving prize, Florence, Italy
2022 – Engraving biennial Giuseppe Maestri, Bagnacavallo, Italy
2022 – City of the Future, Dario Mellone Foundation – Gallery of Independent Artists, Milan, Italy
2021 – Renato Darchini Mosaic Award, Rotary Club of Ravenna, Italy
2021 – Ilaria Ciardi Engraving Award, Michele Tosi Gallery, Ravenna, Italy
2019 – King’s Day, Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Skopje
2018 – Annual exhibition at the DSULUD „Lazar Ličenoski“ Gallery, Skopje
2017 – Mural in honour of Salvador Dali, DSULUD “Lazar Ličenoski”, Skopje