Artist Profile : Primitive RE

Sinisa, aka Primitive RE, is a self-taught contemporary visual artist based in Belgrade, whose versatility across mediums is nothing short of impressive.

He looks like he could craft his own language with nothing but a bucket of pink paint and a broken off Barbie doll head.

This kind of ease, this unforced fluidity, is probably what pushed him to explore a form of semiotics and figuration that’s as minimal and stripped down as it is visceral, raw, and universal. His works, beyond their undeniable aesthetic value, carry narrative charges—sometimes unfolding like whole paragraphs’ worth of thoughts and feels...

But those are just general remarks. In the next section I’ll dive deeper into two fundamental series—in my view—that really unlock the intentions behind these RE-curring (tehehe) explorations: Altered Lines and the Pink Series.

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Collection title: Pink series

When that smoove shade of pink pops into my feed, I don’t even need my glasses to see who posted it, already know. The unmistakable Pink Series is beautifully described by RE himself as:

“Multi-layered, shredded, and covered in color pink as homage to human body and emotions stacked and deeply forgotten.”

Pink as flesh and bone by the telephone. Black as the “primitive calligraphy” in which he inscribes the narrative. Just pick up the receiver—they’ll make you a believer.

That’s what this series does. Stare long enough and you feel like you’re falling into a cognitive playground. The symbolism—which, to me at least, echoes cultural staples like Keith Haring’s silhouettes or Basquiat’s dogs—tells stories that feel intensely personal, yet open up room for universal dialogue about human archetypes, contradictory states of being, and (this is a wild guess, but I’ll leave it in) the cultural limbo of Eastern Europe—a kind of push-pull between Eastern and Western identity, smth like listening to the Ramones on loop during a sweaty summer night in Novi Beograd.

It’s a powerful dichotomy.

And it’s one that’s softened by the atmosphere. That statement pink, for RE, doesn’t just clash or contrast — it acts like a pressure valve, releasing tension. This pink doesn’t scream; it hums...

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Collection title : Altered Lines

Altered Lines, in my opinion, is the natural continuation of the Pink Series. It’s as if the figurative and somewhat tangible started being put under a microscope—deconstructed, broken down, abstracted to its core essence.

“I believe every artist has a unique line or gesture that reveals their character, emotional state, and inner rhythm.” —Primitive RE

It’s a study series, in the best sense of the word. A manierist, disciplined exploration that leads to something raw and fresh—an impressive body of work that marks a shift in RE’s expressive signature.

And it’s not hard to see that behind these lines—marked by his gestural identity—Sinisa leaves little clues, visual breadcrumbs that guide the viewer toward a larger image that carries the essence of the idea that’s being conveyed.

All these clues, all these nuanced details make this study of line a genuine path to re-discovery. Here, the line transforms from a weightless and purely theoretical concept into a vehicle of meaning.

Here, it becomes something else.

We touch on a Gestalt principle—fluid yet fractured gestures form the spinal structure of the composition, inviting the viewer to engage—consciously or sometimes without realizing it—in completing the “big picture".

It’s as if the artist is inviting you to walk that same initiatory path he himself walked, offering a central composition that feels like a series of mind maps, designed to bring you to the other side. And once you’re there, you both get to sit down and enjoy the proverbial “sunset”.

You live that moment together.

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You can find out more about Primitive's work on their Linktree and view their available work on their Exchange Art profile