A Life Painted Between Chaos and Color
I was born in what was once Yugoslavia, in a small corner that today belongs to Bosnia & Herzegovina. From the very start, life made sure I saw the world a little differently, somewhere between philosopher and dirt-covered daydreamer.
Growing up in rural Bosnia was its own brand of magic: chasing chickens, picking vegetables with my grandmother, and learning from my grandfather which mushrooms wouldn’t send you to meet your ancestors. It was wild, simple, and full of wonder until 1992.
And then, the world shifted.
Normal dissolved into chaos.
Home became a story we told each other at night.
I lost my first tooth in a refugee camp and learned my alphabet to the sound of gunfire.
Some children celebrated with fireworks. I learned the sky could burn for other reasons.
And yet, through it all, I had one escape hatch: art.
While the world outside burned, I built new ones with a pencil and scraps of paper. Most kids eventually grow out of drawing. I decided growing up was overrated.
Fast forward to 1998, when Philadelphia became home. My love for art never left, but reality and a touch of immigrant guilt whispered that I should be “practical.” When you’re the child of immigrants, dreams often come second to stability. My parents were supportive, but I still convinced myself that art wasn’t a serious option. Truthfully, I was just afraid to fail at something I loved.
But dreams are stubborn things. You can bury them under deadlines, logic, and “real jobs,” and they’ll still follow you around like a persistent Wi-Fi signal that refuses to disconnect.
In the last ten years, painting has gone from “fun hobby” to a real passion in life. I fell in love with oils in 2016 and have been teaching myself ever since, dabbling in watercolor, acrylics, and pretty much anything that stains the table. Am I still finding my niche? Absolutely. But honestly, who isn’t?
These days my work is drawn to the big mysteries: astrology, the universe, consciousness, and the unseen threads that connect us all. You know, the light stuff.
For years after the war, I think I was always chasing home, trying to find the place I lost and the safety I once knew. It took me a long time to realize that what I was really searching for wasn’t a location at all. Through creativity, I found that home was never out there, it was within.
Art is how I make sense of existence, how I turn the chaos into color and the questions into something beautiful enough to sit with.
Now, I want to share that journey with you: the art, the process, the lessons, the mess.
If nothing else, I hope it reminds you that it’s never too late to chase the things that set your soul on fire.
Thank you for being here. Thank you for seeing me. And if you’ve made it this far, congratulations, you now know me better than most people.
With love,
Biljana Todic
@artbybilyana
“To realize one’s destiny is a person’s only obligation.”
— The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho
