Kasja Jerlagić
– b. 1996. in Sarajevo, where she completed her studies in printmaking at the Academy of Fine Arts. Between 2015 and 2018, she worked at several local galleries, including 11/07/95, Duplex 100m2, and Charlama Depot. From 2018 to 2022, she founded and led the art-activist collective ODRON, organizing events at the intersection of art, culture, and politics, all with the aim of supporting the local and regional alternative scene, encouraging young people to engage in political processes, and fostering critical awareness. Since 2023, she has collaborated with the Atelier for Social Change Foundation – ACT, working on cultural projects, public space activism, and raising awareness about environmental issues. Her paintings are part of the traveling collection Sarajevo Storage by Pierre Courtin, while her tapestries are in the private collections of Irfan Hošić and Ljudmila Stratimirović.
Sometimes, I find it difficult to separate my creative work from my political activism, as they intertwine so deeply that they speak the same truth: the key to survival is empathy and work.1. In my attempt to understand both myself and the world, art serves as a tool for questioning and communicating conclusions.
During the pandemic, I began working with textiles—embroidery, weaving, punch needle techniques2. What started as a therapeutic exercise in patience gradually turned into a much larger exploration of techniques and formats. My works range from colorful thread illustrations to inspirational mantras, composed of literary quotes and fragments of my own thoughts, fears, and symbols34.
Due to the tactility, accessibility, and generosity of the material, I couldn’t put it down. Personal mantras, emotional truths I wish to accept, frustrations with the world—all of this can be placed onto a simple piece of fabric and mercifully released from my mind5.
I use a lot of discarded textiles—torn and unwanted clothes and fabric scraps—which are abundant because my extended family is obsessed with second-hand shops. As a result, a large amount of clothing circulates within our family tree in an endless cycle of gifting6. Some materials are gifts from my grandmothers, remnants of their own unfinished sewing projects. There is relief in removing these abandoned textiles from circulation and transforming them from future waste into works of art. Upcycling straight into the gallery.
My work ranges from the sensitively political to the introspectively aesthetic, and no medium is safe from me7. The common thread is a desire for political action and a reassessment of our place in a system that is hostile to humanity89.
I like to think of myself as a propagandist for a utopia that does not yet exist10.
The text was written in consultancy with Adna Muslija (2025).
1Kasja Jerlagić, T-Shirt, embroidery, 2021.
2Kasja Jerlagić, Memento Vivere, punch-needle, 2021.
3Kasja Jerlagić, Is it okay if I forget, embroidery, 2021.
4Kasja Jerlagić, I will dream of you, punch-needle, 2021.
5Kasja Jerlagić, Uncertainty is reality, embroidery, 2021.
6Kasja Jerlagić, II, embroidery, 2021.
7Kasja Jerlagić, Precarious Work, embroidery, 2022.
8Kasja Jerlagić, Pupil, weaving, 2021.
9Kasja Jerlagić, Heron, weaving.
10Kasja Jerlagić, Until one day, embroidery, 2025.
– r. 1996. u Sarajevu, gdje je završila grafiku na Akademiji likovnih umjetnosti. Između 2015. i 2018. je radila u nekoliko lokalnih galerija: 11/07/95, Duplex 100m2, i Charlama Depot. Osnovala je vodila od 2018. do 2022. umjetničko-aktivistički kolektiv ODRON, organizujući događaje na sjecištu umjetnosti, kulture i politike, sve u cilju podržavanja lokalne i regionalne alternativne scene, poticanja mladih da se uključe u političke procese, i razvijanja kritičke svijesti. Od 2023. godine surađuje sa Fondacijom Atelje za društvene promjene – ACT, na kulturnim projektima, aktivizmu u javnom prostoru i podizanju svijesti o ekološkim pitanjima. Njene slike su dio putujuće kolekcije “Sarajevo Storage“ Pierrea Courtina, a tapiserije u privatnim zbirkama Irfana Hošića i Ljudmile Stratimirović.
Ponekad mi je teško odvojiti svoj kreativni rad od svog političkog djelovanja kada se toliko prožimaju da govore jedno te isto: ključ opstanka su empatija i rad1. U nastojanju da razumijem sebe i svijet, umjetnost služi kao alat za ispitivanje i komuniciranje zaključaka.
Tokom pandemije počela sam raditi sa tekstilom – vez, tkanje, štoc-igla2. Počelo je kao terapeutska vježba za strpljenje polako se pretvorilo u mnogo veće istraživanje tehnika i formata. Radovi se kreću od šarenih končanih ilustracija do inspirativnih mantri, sastavljenih od književnih citata i fragmenata vlastitih misli, strahova i simbola34.
Zbog taktilnosti, pristupačnosti i zahvalnosti materijala nije ga bilo moguće spustiti. Lične mantre, emocionalne istine koje bih voljela da prihvatim, frustracije svijetom, sve se to može staviti na prosti komad tkanine i milostivo osloboditi iz mog uma5.
Koristim dosta odbačenih tkanina – pocijepanu i neželjenu odjeću i krpice – njih ima u izobilju jer je moja šira porodica opsjednuta second hand radnjama, tako da velika količina odjeće kruži po stablu u beskonačnom ciklusu poklanjanja6. Neki materijali su pokloni mojih baka, od njihovih vlastitih nezavršenih šivaćih projekata. Olakšanje je moći izbaciti iz opticaja ove napuštene tekstile i pretvoriti ih iz budućeg otpada u umjetnička djela. “Upcycling” pravo u galeriju.
Moj rad se kreće od senzitivno političkog do introspektivno estetskog, i nijedan medij nije siguran od mene7. Poveznica je želja za političkim djelovanjem i preispitivanje našeg mjesta u sistemu koji je neprijateljski nastrojen prema ljudskosti89.
Volim sebe smatrati propagandistom utopije koja još ne postoji10.
Tekst je napisan u konsultaciji s Adnom Muslija (2025).
1Kasja Jerlagić, T-Shirt, vez, 2021.
2Kasja Jerlagić, Memento Vivere, štoc-igla, 2021.
3Kasja Jerlagić, Is it okay if I forget, vez, 2021.
4Kasja Jerlagić, Sanjaću te, štoc-igla, 2021.
5Kasja Jerlagić, Uncertainty is reality, vez, 2021.
6Kasja Jerlagić, II, vez, 2021.
7Kasja Jerlagić, Prekarni rad, vez, 2022.
8Kasja Jerlagić, Zjenica, tkanje, 2021.
9Kasja Jerlagić, Čaplja, tkanje, 2021.
10Kasja Jerlagić, Sve do jednom, vez, 2025.
