Lejla Ćehajić

– b. 1978 in Sarajevo. She graduated from the Secondary School of Applied Arts in Sarajevo, Department of Sculpture, where she currently works as a professor of plastic shaping. In 2004, she earned her degree from the Academy of Fine Arts in Sarajevo, Department of Sculpture, in the class of Professor Mustafa Skopljak. She has been a member of ULUBIH since 2005, as well as ULUKS and ULUPUBIH. She has exhibited in 82 group and 19 solo exhibitions both nationally and internationally and has participated in multiple art/sculpture colonies. Since 2021, she has been a member of the Artistic Council of the Collegium Artisticum City Gallery and, since 2022, the president of the Association of Fine Artists of the Sarajevo Canton. She has received several awards, including the “Kenan Solaković” sculpture award at the annual ULUBIH exhibition, the “Third Youth Salon” award in 2009, the Grand Prix of the ULUBIH April 6th Exhibition in 2011, the International “Private and Public” Award in 2011, and the “Collegium Artisticum” Award in 2022 in the category of unique design.

I spent my formative years under the siege of Sarajevo. One of my sanctuaries was found in comics and literature. In the post-war “country in transition,” a state without a state, within a system of collapsing values, without a sense of belonging, and in the absence of religious belief, the only solid ground I found for understanding the world and myself was in nature, its laws, and art.

In my work, I express myself primarily through sculpture—classical sculpture, often combined with other elements such as photography, found objects, and materials. I am also drawn to spatial installations and assemblages1. While my artistic cycles may seem vastly different, they remain interconnected, as I play with various materials, aesthetics, poetics, and humor, depending on what I wish to communicate.

I explore states of mind, soul, and psyche, as well as my own intimate worlds, but I do not remain blind to the social aspects of the society I live in. I find myself drawn to bizarre atmospheres of tragicomedy, whose elements I instinctively recognize and then merge and treat with a subtle, feminine, sculptural visual language, establishing layers of symbolic meaning2.

Sometimes, I attempt to create poetry in three dimensions. Some of my works refer to a specific moment or idea, raising awareness of factual or conceptual realities. Others take on a literary narrative form, woven from the need to construct a complex visual story—one that narrates itself without a clear beginning or end. A thread of humor runs through all my works3. I see humor as a survival tool—a means of presenting tragedy without making the viewer turn away. It ensures a genuine impact on the observer. This is precisely why humor is essential—as a counterbalance, a lifeline.

The terrible and the absurd can be siblings.

I seek meaning, comfort, and an attempt to calm the chaos and complexity of life—yet I do so without the ambition to convey anything beyond an acknowledgment of my own existence. I incorporate fragments of my thoughts, realizations, and experiences into my work, structuring them within a narrative framework, treating them as elements within a process governed by controlled randomness. In doing so, my works depict a world dominated by conditions and constraints4.

When embodied in the solid medium of sculpture, they unfold before the observer as a chronicle of our time. Whether viewed individually or as a whole, my sculptures result from a continuous pursuit of developing a visual language and an endless search for an authentic artistic expression. Through sculptural material, I aim to capture the essence of the contemporary moment and human nature, giving them new meanings and interpretations through recognizable signs and symbols5. Under glass domes, there exist dozens of micro-worlds6. Each one encapsulates a spiritual poetics of artistic contemplation or meditation. Beneath them, I place fragments of my neighborhood, forming an intimate portrayal of my everyday life.

Many of my sculptures are figurative—some depict people from my surroundings, while others are portraits of my inner self7. I feel a particular passion for portraits—continuous observation, study, searching for character, and transformation8. The cycle Dumpster Divers9 is visually pure and devoid of ideological bias, yet it remains a socially engaged act, revealing the suffering of a society in an almost pre-apocalyptic state10. Inspired by Van Gogh’s cycle From the Lives of Miners, it is a mirror of our reality—a monument to an absurd era, yet diminished to the size of a child’s toy. Boats series emerged after the Dollhouse assemblage11, which portrays poetic representations of personal and universal stories. Each boat serves as a narrative of its own, constructed through a playful interaction with diverse materials, in which I recognize the necessary energy to compose an image, a thought.

Play is both a crucial and a deeply serious matter. Just as in life, so too in creating art.

The text was written in collaboration with Adna Muslija (2024).

1Lejla Čehajić, Surprise, installation, variable dimension, 2022. 
2Lejla Čehajić, Untitled, installation, 2014.
3Lejla Čehajić, Stećak, skulpture, 2016.
4Lejla Čehajić, Surprise, installation, variable dimension, 2022.
5Lejla Čehajić, Untitled, sculpture, variable dimension, 2018.
6Lejla Čehajić, Crystal balls, sculpture, 2016.
7Lejla Čehajić, Portaits, sculptures, variable dimension, 2021.
8Lejla Čehajić, Jusuf Hadžifejzović, sculpture, 2021.
9Lejla Čehajić, The Diggers, sculpture, 2020.
10Lejla Čehajić, The Diggers, sculpture, 2020.
11Lejla Čehajić, Doll House, installation, 2019. 

– r. 1978 u Sarajevu. Završila je Srednju školu primijenjenih umjetnosti u Sarajevu, odsjek vajarstvo, gdje trenutno i radi kao profesor na predmetu plastično oblikovanje. Diplomirala je na Akademiji likovnih umjetnosti u Sarajevu, odsjek kiparstvo 2004. godine u klasi profesora Mustafe Skopljaka. Član je ULUBIH-a od 2005. godine, ULUKS-a, i ULUPUBIH-a . Izlagala je na 82 zajedničke i 19 samostalnih izložbi u zemlji i inostranstvu i učestvovala na više likovnih/kiparskih kolonija. Član je umjetničkog savjeta gradske galerije Collegium Artisticum od 2021, i predsjednica Udruženja likovnih umjetnika Kantona Sarajevo od 2022.godine. Dobitnica je nagrada za skulpturu “Kenan Solaković” na godišnjoj izložbi ULUBIH-a, “Treći Salon Mladih” za 2009. godinu, Grand Prix Šestoaprilske izložbe ULUBiH-a za 2011. godinu, Međunarodna nagrade «Privatno i javno « 2011. godine, te Nagrade “Collegium artisticum” 2022, u kategoriji unikatno oblikovanje.

Formativne godine provela sam pod opsadom Sarajeva. Jedan od zaklona su bili stripovi i književnost. U poslijeratnoj “zemlji u tranziciji”, državi bez države i sistemu raspadajućih vrijednosti, bez osjećaja pripadnosti, te u nedostatku religijskih uvjerenja, jedino u čemu sam pronašla čvrsto tlo za razumijevanje svijeta i sebe bili su priroda, njeni zakoni i umjetnost.

U svom radu izražavam se skulpturom – klasičnom, često kombinirajući je s drugim elementima; fotografijama, pronađenim predmetima i materijalima. Bliske su mi i prostorne instalacije i asamblaž1. Stvaram, reklo bi se, veoma različite, ali opet povezane cikluse prostornih umjetničkih djela, igrajući se sa različitim materijalima, likovnošću, poetikama i humorom, ovisno o tome šta želim reći.  

Istražujem stanja duha, duše, psihe i vlastitih intimnim svjetova, ali ne ostajem slijepa spram socijalnih aspekata društva u kojem živim. Pronalazim sebe u bizarnim atmosferama tragikomedije, čije elemente prepoznajem instikntivno, a potom spajam i tretiram suptilnim, ženskim i skulptorskim likovnim jezikom uspostavljajući slojeve različitog simboličkog značenja2. Ponekad pokušavam stvarati poeziju u tri dimenzije. Nekada moji radovi upućuju na jedan trenutak ili ideju, te osvještavaju činjenične ili konceptalne datosti. Drugi, pak, gotovo posjeduju karakter književnog narativa, satkanog od potrebe da se preko materijala i univerzalno prepoznatljivih motiva ostvari kompleksna slika, koja samu sebe pripovijeda bez početka i kraja. Kroz sve njih provlači se nita humora3. Humor prepoznajem kao alat za spas, koji istovremeno omogućava predstavljanje tragedije bez da posmatrač od nje okrene glavu. Osigurava istinski prodor do posmatrača. Upravo zato je humor neophodan – kao balans, ili obruč za spasavanje.

Strašno i smiješno mogu biti rod.

Pokušavam pronaći smisao, utjehu, te umiriti haos i kompleksnosti življenja, lišena ambicije da kroz svoj umjetnički rad o tome saopštim išta više od upućivanja na vlastitu egzistenciju. Segmente vlastitog promišljanja, spoznaja i iskustava stavljam u službu izvjesne narativne strukture, tretirajući ih kao elemente u procesu zasnovanom na kontroliranju slučajnosti. Kao takvi, oni predstavljaju svijet dominiran faktorom uslovljenosti4.

Utjelovljeni u čvrstom mediju skulpture, pred posmatračem se razvijaju u hroniku našeg vremena. Bilo da se gledaju pojedinačno, ili u cjelini, moje skulpture su rezultat kontinuirane težnje za razvojem likovnog jezika, te neumornog traganja za autentičnim umjetničkim izrazom i vizualnim prikazom koji bi u skulptorskom materijalu uhvatio savremeni trenutak i ljudsku prirodu, dajući im novih značenja i tumačenja kroz prepoznatljive znakove i simbole5. Pod staklenim kuglama nalaze se deseci mikrosvjetova6. Svaki od njih zaokružuje duhovnu poetiku umjetničkog promišljanja ili meditacije. Ispod njih nalaze se djelići komšiluka, koji čine intimu mog svakodnevnog života.

Mnoge od mojih skulptura su figurativne. Nekada predstavljaju osobe iz moje okoline, a nekad su prikaz moje unutrašnjosti7. Portreti u meni bude specifičku strast. Neprestano promatranje, izučavanje, traženje karaktera i transfomiranje8. Ciklus Kopači kontejnera9 je likovno čist i neideologiziran angažirani čin, iz kojeg se iščitava društvena patnja gotovo predapokaliptičnog stanja10. Inspirisan Van Goghovim ciklusom “Iz života rudara”, preslika je naše stvarnosti – spomenik vremenu apsurdnih dimenzija, umanjen do veličine dječije igračke. Ciklus Brodovi nastao je poslije asamblaža Lutkina kuća11, koji predstavljaju poetični prikaz ličnih i univerzalnih priča. Svaki od brodova, kao narativ za sebe, građen je u igri s raznovrsnim materijalima u kojima sam prepoznala energiju potrebnu da se sklopi slika, misao.

Igra bitna i vrlo ozbiljna stvar. Kako u životu tako i u stvaranju umjetnosti.

Tekst je napisan u konsultaciji sa Adnom Muslija (2024.)

1Lejla Čehajić, Iznenađenje, instalacija, dimenzije varijabilne, 2022.
2Lejla Čehajić, Bez naziva, instalacija, 2014.
3Lejla Čehajić, Stećak, skulptura, 2016.
4Lejla Čehajić, Surprise, installation, variable dimension, 2022.
5Lejla Čehajić, Bez naziva, skulptura, varijabilne dimenzije, 2018.
6Lejla Čehajić, Staklene kugle, skulpture, 2016.
7Lejla Čehajić, Portreti, skulpture, 2021.
8Lejla Čehajić, Jusuf Hadžifejzović, skulptura, 2021.
9Lejla Čehajić, Kopači, skulptura, 2020.
10Lejla Čehajić, Kopači, skulptura, 2020.
11Lejla Čehajić, Lutkina kuća, instalacija, 2019.