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Greetings!
At the heart of Anja Karisik’s art practice is a lyrical and emotive celebration of nature’s beauty. In a harmonious blend of realism and poetic abstraction, her work captures the ephemeral qualities of landscapes and water, emphasizing fluid movement, light, and atmospheric depth.
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Tanglewood - oil & acrylic on canvas, 48 x 60 inches
(Humber River Trail)
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Strata of Memory, the artist’s debut solo exhibition at Ingram Gallery, takes place May 3 - 23. Join Karisik at her artist’s reception between 1pm and 3pm on opening day Saturday, May 3.
ANJA KARISIK
Strata of Memory
May 3 - 23, 2025
Opening Reception with the Artist:
// Saturday, May 3 // 1pm - 3pm
Seamlessly navigating between media, Karisik’s process is both intuitive and structured. The timeless, meditative quality of her compositions invites viewers to connect with nature’s rhythms and their own emotional landscapes.
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A Nation Reflected - oil & acrylic on canvas, 48 x 60 inches
(Doe Lake, near Katrine, Ontario)
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Anja Karisik was born in 1987 in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Hercegovina. Fleeing the Bosnian conflict in 1994, her family settled along the Adriatic seacoast of northern Croatia for two years, where the vibrant intertidal life left an enduring imprint on her artistic worldview. Immigrating to Toronto, Canada, in 1996, Karisik’s career took root under the mentorship of her father, artist Ciba Karisik.
After earning an Honours degree in Art History from the University of Toronto’s Trinity College and studying drawing at the Toronto School of Art, Karisik excelled in the commercial gallery world working with Odon Wagner Gallery and Loch Gallery as an important step toward her now full-time studio practice.
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Eddying Tide - oil on panel, 36 x 36 inches
(Lake Superior shoreline)
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“Eddying Tide” (above) is a close-up view of the enduring solidity of rocks set against the ever-shifting translucence of shallow lake water. The water moves languidly over and around the stones, forming eddies that distort and magnify the stones' colours. I chose to focus on an excerpt of this superior lake and offer the viewer a moment of intimacy with the landscape.
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Coastal Carvings - oil on panel, 48 x 36 inches
(Bayfield, Ontario)
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Years of exposure to the elements sculpt driftwood into an art form. With its natural grain and weathered texture, this is nature's artistry at its finest. Each crevice and curve tells the saga undertaken across bodies of water. Driftwood has a wonderful capacity for narrative in its constant tales of transformation.
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Flora I (Humber River) - oil on panel, 14 x 11 inches
(Humber River Trail)
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Anja Karisik channels her experiences into vibrant oils and delicate pastels, fusing form and function with meticulous detail and bold experimentation. Inspired by her daily walks along the Humber River, trips to the shores of the Great Lakes, and her coastal travels, the artist captures an intimate, interconnected essence in her works, weaving personal memory with nature’s ethereal splendour.
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Momentum #1 - gouache & pastel on paper, 18 x 24 inches
(Pinguisibi River, Lake Superior Provincial Park)
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By narrowing the view, I hope to expand the experience.
—Anja Karisik
In Strata of Memory, Karisik guides us across Canada’s rugged landscapes, weaving together the tender pulse of personal history with the subtle beauty of the four seasons. Eschewing grand vistas, she captures moments of quiet reverence. Her gestural brushstrokes and tactile surfaces invite viewers to pause, reconnect with nature’s ever-changing rhythms, and find a soulful antidote to urban living.
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The Wish Keepers - oil & acrylic on panel, 36 x 36 inches
(Humber River Trail)
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"The Wish Keepers" (above) is a closeup of dandelion puffs clustered together. Their delicate seeds wait to become wishes. A solitary yellow dandelion hasn't yet turned to seed and its petals begin to curl inward, hinting at the transition. It's a moment suspended in time—a bridge between bloom and breeze.
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Winterscape - acrylic on canvas, 60 x 60 inches
(Collingwood, Ontario)
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Please be in touch to preview the full collection and to receive the Strata of Memory exhibition catalogue.
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Starlight - oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches
(Killarney Provincial Park)
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Anja Karisik will be present at the opening reception on Saturday, May 3, 2025, from 1pm to 3pm.
Karisik’s paintings are a captivating blend of memory, nature, and introspection. Meet the artist and experience her work firsthand at the gallery on Saturday, May 3.
Immerse yourself in the serenity of Strata of Memory at Ingram Gallery from May 3 - 23.
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Pacific Hideaway - oil on canvas, 40 x 60 inches
(Tlell, Haida Gwaii, British Columbia)
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Tarah Aylward
Ingram Gallery Inc.
24 Hazelton Avenue
Toronto, Ontario
416-929-2220
For the Love of Art | #AtTheGallery
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