BIOGRAPHY

Gregor Kraljić was born in 1994 in Slovenj Gradec. Since his elementary school years, he has been actively engaged in painting and writing, as he grew up in a creative family and environment, constantly in touch with art, as his father is a painter and writer. He is a member of the Šaleški Artists Association (DŠL) and the Hotenja Literary Association.

He actively participates in group exhibitions of the Šaleški Artists Association at Vila Bianca and in group exhibitions of KD Medžimurje at the Velenje City Library. Along with participants of various workshops led by mentors Denis Senegačnik, Milan Todić, and other academic painters, he presents the works created at group exhibitions.

He participated with his paintings at the international festival RePannonia 2023 and the international mask exhibition in Krapina. His works were also displayed at a group exhibition in the EKO DRAVA Art Salon. On the topic of Fullness of Emptiness, organized by the Slovenian Association of Art Societies, his paintings reached the regional level.

He has had solo exhibitions, first in a gallery in Sv. Martin na Muri (2022), then at the Scheier Palace gallery (Čakovec, Croatia) in 2023, and at the City Gallery Šoštanj (2023).

He enjoys donating his works for charitable purposes. As a young man, in 2011, his painting "Green Velenje" was sold at auction during the "Velenje Helps" campaign, contributing to a fund for targeted assistance. In 2023, he also participated in a charity auction to help people from flood-affected areas.

His artworks have been exhibited together with family members at Velenje Castle ("Familia Kraljić I", "Familia Kraljić II"), in Ljutomer at the Anton Trstenjak Gallery, at the City Gallery Šoštanj (KAJUH 2022), at Vila Bianca (group exhibition of DŠL), at a group exhibition of young authors in Vuzenica, at the international exhibition ZAGREB FULL COLOR, and in Venice at the "Lido di Venezia" gallery, where he also received a Declaration of Excellence from an international jury.

He was selected by a professional jury and, along with participants from 45 countries, exhibited at the leading cultural-artistic event in Slovenia, ART EXPO 2023. In a juried international competition, his painting was chosen for an exhibition in Paris at the Thuillier Gallery, where he received a Certificate of Quality.

Gregor Kraljić's poems were published in the HOTENJA 2022 anthology. He also performed at the European Capital of Culture in Maribor in 2012, at the SOSED TVOJEGA BREGA festival. His literary works reached the finals of the national festival of young literature Urška 2022, where he won a silver award. The Croatian Cultural Assembly awarded him the Mihovil Pavlek Miškina plaque for poetry. His poem was selected among 105 authors in the "Croatian Spiritual Poetry Stjepan Kranjčić 2023" competition. He was chosen and awarded at the national gathering of foreign-writing poets, SOSED TVOJEGA BREGA 2023.

With the support of the Municipality of Velenje, he published his first poetry collection "Golden Poems" (2022), which was included in the reading list for the Reading Badge project. His second poetry collection titled "Hourglasses" (2023) was also published with the support of the Municipality of Velenje.

He has performed on various occasions at literary events, in the Lily Novy Park at the headquarters of the Slovenian Writers' Association (DSP), during the 100th anniversary of Karlo Destovnik Kajuh at the Velenje Library, at the City Gallery Šoštanj, and in front of Kajuh's Memorial House, as part of the Velenje project "Poets Read Poets." On International Mother Language Day, he performed at the Slovenian Writers' Association (DSP) and on World Poetry Day at Gromka in Metelkova, among others.

His poems have also been broadcast as part of the literary program "Literary Fragments" on national radio ARS, including the poem "Freedom," which is a preview of his upcoming poetry collection "Hourglasses." Other poems from this collection were also presented in a literary nocturne on ARS radio and on the program "Sami Naši."

Gregor has also ventured into graphic design, designing the poetry collection "Metamorphoses" by Vid Sagadin Žigon and several anthologies for the international festival Murakon.

This year, two poetry collections, "Angst" and "Glass Dreams," have been published. In August, he will exhibit in Lidköping, Sweden, as part of the international and intergenerational project "The Wealth of Diversity." His painting "Expressions" will be displayed at an international exhibition in New York, at the One Art Space Gallery on Manhattan.

A brief presentation of Gregor's painting and poetry creations was featured in the show "NaGlas" on national television.