1924 Born in Kovacica, Serbia (formerly Yugoslavia) Self-taught artist who started painting as a child 1944 Began his artistic career as a painter; a theater set decorator and a writer for the pin-up newspaper “Bojovnik;” during World War II, joined the partisans 1951 Jointed the Kovacica “school” of naïve art ; co-founder of the arts and ethnic section of the Cultural and Educational Society of Pokrok, Serbia 1955 Participated in establishing of a farmer-painter gallery in Kovacica, Serbia Solo Exhibitions 1962 Djuro Salaj Gallery, Belgrade, Serbia 1963 Workers’ Home, Dubrovnik, Croatia 1964 Numaga Gallery, Auvernier, Switzerland 1966 Nora Gallery, Jersualem, Israel 1967 Regional Museum of Porec, Porec, Croatia 1968 Tourist Association, Zagreb, Croatia 1970 Community Culture Center, Kovacica, Serbia 1971 Nokum Gallery, Amsterdam, Holland 1973 Simone Budet Gallery, Toulouse, France 1976 Studio d’Arte T, Latisana, Italy 1978 Nayttely Tolon, Helsinki, Finland 1981 Gallery of Self-Taught Artists, Jagodina, Serbia 1982 Ethnographic Museum, Belgrade, Serbia 1983 Common Center, Moscow, Russia 1987 Jugoslavisk Norsk Samband, Trodheim, Norway 1988 World Bank, Washington, USA 2006 “A Retrospective: Man and Earth”, GINA Gallery of International Naïve Art, Tel Aviv Group Exhibitions 1952 First exhibition, Celebration of the 150th anniversary of the founding of Kovacica, Kovacica, Serbia 1955 Exhibition of amateur painters from Vojvodina, Subotica, Serbia Exhibition of Painters from Banat, Pancevo, Serbia 1957 Masarikova Street Pavilion, Belgrade, Serbia Gallery of Primitive Art, Zagreb, Croatia 1960 “The Kovacica School,” Gallery of Primitive Art, Zagreb, Croatia 1961 “Contemporary Yugoslav Primitive Painters,” The Arthur Jefresson Gallery, London, England Edinburgh Festival, Edinburgh, Scotland 1962 Yugoslav Naïve Artists’ quadrennial exhibition, Nadeza Petrovie Gallery, Cacak, Serbia 1963 Galerie St.-Etienne, New York, USA 1964 Numaga Gallery, Auvernier, Switzerland 1966 Nora Gallery, Jerusalem, Israel Slovene National Gallery, Bratislava, Slovakia 1968 Kunsthalle Bremen Gallery, Bremen, Germany Albert Dorne Gallery, Amsterdam, Holland Bols Taverne, Amsterdam, Holland Groningen Museum Voor Stad en Lande, Groningen, Holland 1969 El Tallery Gallery, Buenos Aires, Argentina Slovene National Gallery, Bratislava, Slovakia 1971 Nokum Gallery, Amsterdam, Holland Palais de Beaux-Arts, Charleroi, Belgium “Naïve Painters from Vojvodina,” Cultural Center Gallery, Kovacica, Serbia 1972 Isy Brachot Gallery, Brussels, Belgium 1973 Renee Darom Art Gallery, Tel Aviv, Israel Simon Boudet Gallery, Toulouse, France Salotto dell’Arte, Milan, Italy Mattkasse Gallery 24, Wil, Germany 1974 Milan Gallery, Berlin, Germany 1976 Studio d’Arte T, Latisana, Italy Gold engraving exhibition, Capri , Italy 1978 Maison de la Culture, Amiens, France 1981 Kasper Gallery, Morges, Switzerland 1982 “Pastel Reports,” Cultural Center Gallery, Kovacica, Serbia 1983 Dom Druzby, House of Friendship, Moscow, Russia 1984 The Royal Festival Hall, London, England 1986 City Museum, Prague, Czech Republic 1988 Transco Gallery West, Houston, TX, USA Yugoslavian Cultural Center, Paris, France 1989 Villa d’Art, Voreppe, France 1990 Andre Gallery, Chicago, Illinois, USA Balmoral Art Galleries, Geelong, Victoria, Australia 1991 Expressions Gallery, Melbourne, Australia 1992 Expressions Gallery, Houston, Texas, USA Holdsworth Galleries, Sydney, Australia Balmoral Art Galleries, Geelong, Victoria, Australia Solander Gallery, Canberra, Australia Duke Gallery, Melbourne, Australia 1993 George’s Gallery, Melbourne, Australia Holdsworth Galleries, Sydney, Australia Duke Gallery, Melbourne, Australia The Magic Art Center, New York, New York, USA 1994 Duke Gallery, Melbourne, Australia Jeannine Blais Gallery, North Hatley, Quebec, Canada Museum of Naïve Art, Kecskemet, Hungary 1995 Museum of Naïve Art, Jagodina, Serbia 1996 City Musuem, Skopje, Macedonia 1998 Museum of Modern Art, Minsk, Belarus 2005 “Shades of Contrasting Cultures,” GINA Gallery of International Naïve Art, Tel Aviv, Israel Prizes 1974 Gold Medal, Rome, Italy 1975 Gold Key to the City of Toulouse, France Gold Medal, Rome, Italy 1977 Key to the City of Feluca, Italy 1978 Primitive Modern Art Contest Prize, Morges, Switzerland 1987 Gold Medal, International drawing competition, Italy Collections Museum of Naïve Art, Jagodina, Serbia National Gallery, Bratislava, Slovakia Ethnographic Museum, Belgrade, Serbia Royal Collections in Spain, The Netherlands, Jordan World Bank, Washington D.C., USA Lyndon B. Johnson (former President of the United States) Ronald Reagan (former President of the United States) Francois Mitterand (former President of France) Brigitte Bardot Bibliography “Peintres Naifs – A Dictionary of Primitive Painters,” Anatole Jacovsky, 1967, New York, USA “Les Proverbs vus par les Peintres Naifs,” Anatole Jacovsky, 1973, Paris, France “Yugoslav Naïve Art,” 1973, Belgrade, Serbia “Naïve Art Paintings,” 1977, New York, USA “Martin Jonas”, M. Boskovic, 1978, Amiens, France “Naïve Painters of Yugoslavia,” Summerfield Press, 1978, USA “Modern Primitives”, Oto Bihalji-Merin, 1978, London, England “Primitive Painting”, D. Zdunik, 1981, New York, USA “World Encyclopedia of Naïve Art,” Oto Bihalji-Merin and Nebojsa-Bato Tomasevic, 1984, Belgrade, Serbia “Serbian Naïve Art with Australian Guest Artists,” V. Carapic & K. Smiljkovic, 1989, Melbourne, Australia “Martin Jonas,” I. Melichercik, 1993, Bratislava, Slovakia, “Naïve Art in Australia, Canada and Europe,” Vasa Carapic, 1994, Melbourne, Australia “The Key to Making Dreams Come True,” Koviljka Smiljkovic, 1999, Novi Sad, Serbia “Naïve Art in Serbia,” The Serbian Academy of Art and the Museum of Naïve Art, 2003, Jagodina, Serbia