From Piccadilly to Piccadilly Circus
Twenty-four years later, on the 24th
This year has been very significant to me as I return fully to being a practising professional artist, turning my attention, focus and energy to creating more paintings. And then a wonderful set of serendipitous circumstances started appearing in my life. I received invitations to participate in the Square Foot Show exhibitions, which I had almost forgotten I'd applied for because so much had happened in the meantime. I started exhibiting again, and I began asking myself: what more can I do? I joined a community of artists specifically focused on building an art career from the perspective of 2026, rather than 2011, when I had left my professional art career behind and looked for a corporate job.
It was through this community that I saw a wonderful opportunity to be part of a showcase in Piccadilly Circus. Immediately, something inside me said, "Yes, I should be part of this." It felt right. I should be there. Of course, as ever, there were a few factors outside my control. But I followed my intuition and applied. At that point, I was simply excited about the opportunity to exhibit my work in the heart of London.
In February 2002, I had applied for a licence to exhibit my paintings at Bayswater Road, beside Hyde Park in London. It was a very well-known outdoor art exhibition, and everybody who came from in or outside London would go to Bayswater Road first, meet the artists and browse the endless display of colourful paintings. But Bayswater Road was full when I applied, so Westminster City Council offered me a place along Piccadilly, beside Green Park. My starting day was 10 February 2002, and what I didn’t know when I got the licence to trade was that it would be the day of my grandmother's funeral. She had passed away a couple of days before, and my parents said, "Do not come for the funeral. You have this important date to keep, and the start of your artist career. She would understand, and it wouldn't change anything about you being here."
I had a fantastic relationship with my grandmother, who, along with my entire family, lived in Serbia. We had a thirty-year-long companionship of love and friendship, and she very much loved that I was an artist. She was a creative person herself, a seamstress, a wonderful cook and baker, so passionate about growing and arranging flowers. She loved everything I made, especially my glass painting. I had even painted some glass jars for her where she kept coffee and sugar. We had spent so much time together over the years, and I had seen her regularly, so I understood what my parents were saying. That first day of my exhibition was entirely dedicated to her. I was surrounded by my memories, and of course I was in an unknown space, beginning something new in my life. I felt that this was what was meant to be. I knew that this was her blessing that she was sending to me on that day, that those two dates somehow had to coincide.
Piccadilly is this imposing street, and Green Park is tall, dense, beautiful. Full of mature trees. At the other end it is Buckingham Palace, where the Queen lived. The whole setting was very grand, very statement-like, and it was a tremendous time in our lives. The artists who were already exhibiting there welcomed me with open arms. At first, we didn't know what to expect. We brought my paintings, but we could only lean them against the fence or hang them directly on the Green Park railings. We didn't yet have any proper display, and we had to learn how to make the most of the space available to us. The pavement was narrow where we were, and there wasn't much room between our cars and the people walking along and visiting the exhibition.
Later on, we discovered how to make folding boards that were easy to pack and put up on the fence. We bought perforated display boards, the kind shops use, and constructed hinged frames with large folding hooks at the back. We could simply open them up and hang them on the fence. Our display was actually copied afterwards by other artists, because it was our invention! The space required us to go higher with our displays because we couldn't spread out very much along the pavement. The more established artists were further up Piccadilly, near the bigger gates, and we were about halfway down, close to a smaller entrance into Green Park.
It was quite an intimate setting. People were curious, they stopped and asked about certain paintings, and I sold many of my smaller watercolours quite quickly. At that time, I was painting a lot of smaller works and learning all the time. I hadn't studied art formally, so I was teaching myself from books written by other artists and instructional courses on video cassettes. Those were the days before YouTube! Green Park was also different from Bayswater Road because we were allowed to exhibit handmade objects. I was painting on silk, so alongside my watercolours I had silk cushions, cards, scarves and silk paintings. I even had display cabinets for the smaller pieces. There was an abundance of artwork and handmade things, and the whole atmosphere was very welcoming.
My parents came to visit during those months, and my dad and I would paint together. He lived in Belgrade, but when he came to London in the summer, if he had a painting or two ready, he would bring them with him. My dad's landscapes were beautiful. They were very calming. He had a special touch with mixing colours, and his lovely portrayal of the land, maybe a few animals, and the atmosphere of the sky. The relationship between the land and sky in his paintings was something special. He loved painting landscapes, and we enjoyed painting together. He actually sold one painting right there.
After six months, I finally received my licence for Bayswater Road, and we moved to the exhibition beside Hyde Park, near Victoria Gate where cars enter the park. There was significantly more room and light there. We could put a picnic table and an umbrella next to our dayvan, people could spend time looking at my paintings without being disturbed, and I could sit at the table and paint. It was a very different atmosphere from Green Park, where we had been so close to the passersby. At Bayswater Road, we could only exhibit flat art, so the exhibition itself was quite different too. Those were the beginnings of my professional life as an exhibiting artist, and I continued exhibiting and selling my paintings for many years afterwards.
When I returned to pursuing my professional art career in 2026, I began discovering how much more there was to learn about the art world. In the earlier years, I had exhibited at Bayswater Road, sold my paintings directly to the public, taken commissions for commercial interiors and participated in art and craft shows. I knew about galleries, of course, but I hadn't understood all the possibilities available to an artist or how to access them. The internet was very different then, too. Now I was giving myself permission to explore more, to learn about building relationships with galleries and other organisations, and to approach my artistic career with a new understanding of the opportunities available today.
It was only after my place had been confirmed among the fifteen participating artists in Piccadilly Circus Showcase, and I had chosen my two aquarelles, Venetian Bridge and Midday, that something clicked. I looked at the date, 24 October, and suddenly thought, hang on a minute, I started exhibiting along Piccadilly back in 2002. That was exactly twenty-four years ago! And now, twenty-four years later, my paintings would be returning to Piccadilly, this time on digital screens at Lillywhites in Piccadilly Circus, on the 24th of October. I love the beautiful symmetry of it all.
So much has happened in those twenty-four years, and so much has changed. What a journey we have been on between those two moments! For me, this full-circle moment is an affirmation that I am on the right path. I have reconnected with my initial intent, and I have returned fully as an artist. I feel that God is affirming to me that I am exactly in the right place. It's the confirmation that I am back, and the journey continues.
On Saturday 24 October 2026, between 12 noon and 10 pm, Venetian Bridge and Midday will be displayed at Lillywhites in Piccadilly Circus alongside the work of fourteen other artists, and everyone is welcome to come and see them.
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