Meet Aleksandra Scepanovic

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Aleksandra Scepanovic. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Aleksandra below.

Aleksandra, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?

For me, resilience springs from a lifetime of navigating both external turmoil and an inner drive for self-discovery. Growing up amidst instability, particularly during my early years in Yugoslavia and my experience as a war reporter in the Balkans, I encountered the fragility and unpredictability of reality firsthand. This taught me early on about adaptation and the quiet strength needed to endure.

When I found myself on a new continent, I was forced to rebuild from the ground up—a process that brought both liberation and challenge. In these moments, I drew on fragments of my past, using them as sources of strength rather than weights to carry. Each sculpture I create is, in part, a conversation with those fragments, channeling the bravery it took to press forward and the joy of discovering peace in the present. That is what resilience is to me—a blend of survival, reflection, and transformation.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

Thank you for inviting me to share my journey. As a sculptor, my work delves into the complexities of identity, resilience, and transformation. My path to sculpture was anything but typical; it began in socialist Yugoslavia and later took me through years as a war reporter in the Balkans, where I encountered both the resilience and vulnerability of the human spirit in ways that have stayed with me.

My art is where these experiences find form—a place where fragments are pieced together to embody strength through what might seem broken. Each sculpture is an invitation for viewers to connect with these fragmented forms, to reflect on their own perceptions of wholeness, memory, and intuition. I see my work as a bridge between my story and the viewer’s, sparking a dialogue about displacement, resilience, and the beauty that can emerge from transformation.

What excites me most is how each piece becomes a universal story, grounded in my personal journey yet open for others to find themselves within it. Growing up amidst change and conflict and rediscovering meaning in a new world has profoundly shaped my approach to art. At its core, my work is a tribute to endurance and identity—an exploration of what it means to adapt, transform, and find unexpected beauty in life’s fractures. It’s my honor to share these narratives through sculpture, creating a space for viewers to pause, reflect, and perhaps glimpse their own stories within these forms.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

Reflecting on my journey, three essential qualities stand out: resilience, curiosity, and the willingness to embrace vulnerability.

Resilience has been fundamental to my process. Both in art and life, resilience is the ability to keep moving forward despite challenges, to adapt, to reshape, to flow between answers and solutions. My advice to those early in their journey is to approach every setback as an opportunity to learn and grow. Each obstacle has the potential to refine your perspective and deepen your work, so embrace resilience as a tool for creative evolution.

Remaining open to new ideas and experiences has always driven me forward. Whether in my early days of exploration or my current work, curiosity has been a source of constant renewal and discovery. For those starting out, I’d encourage you to actively seek out diverse experiences, ideas, and influences. Experiment, ask questions, and explore areas that may initially seem unrelated to your path—you never know how they might enrich your perspective and fuel your creativity.

I have always felt that vulnerability is the gateway to authentic expression. Through my explorations, I search for the raw edges of human experience. This requires a willingness to expose parts of myself that may feel fragile. To those on their journey, don’t shy away from vulnerability; instead, see it as a strength. When you allow yourself to be vulnerable, you give yourself and others permission to connect more deeply with the humanity within your art.

Do you think it’s better to go all in on our strengths or to try to be more well-rounded by investing effort on improving areas you aren’t as strong in?

I believe that going all in on our strengths can lead to the most impactful growth. Strengths are often tied to our innate abilities and deepest passions—those qualities that make our work distinctive and, ultimately, most fulfilling. When we focus on these areas, we’re able to create something resonant and unique that feels true to who we are.

In my own journey as a sculptor, I’ve found that leaning into my strengths, particularly in exploring themes of resilience and transformation, has allowed me to create art that reflects my core experiences and worldview. When I began working with clay, I didn’t immediately try to master every possible technique. Instead, I focused on the things I was naturally drawn to: the exploration of fragmented forms, the play between strength and vulnerability, and the balance of polished versus raw textures. This allowed my work to grow organically, becoming a more genuine reflection of my perspective.

That said, I also see the value in honing certain skills outside of our natural strengths, especially when they can support or enhance our primary work. For example, I’ve invested time in studying foundational techniques that were outside my comfort zone because they expanded my ability to express the ideas I was passionate about. But these efforts always came back to enriching my strengths rather than diverting my energy toward areas that didn’t resonate as much.

Ultimately, I feel that our strengths are the most potent tools we have for meaningful impact. Investing in them gives us a sense of momentum and confidence that can even improve areas we’re less strong in. Embracing what we’re naturally good at and amplifying it has a way of drawing others to our work because it allows us to connect from a place of authenticity and passion.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://aleksandrasculpture.com
• Instagram: @atelierwdstk_hudsonvalley

Image Credits

Photos by artist