Sali Shijaku, painter, Painter of the People, was born in Tirana. He completed his higher studies at the Institute “IE Rjepin” of the Academy of Arts in Leningrad (1960). He started working as a painting lecturer at the Higher Institute of Arts. Among the first works of Sali Shijaku are several works, such as portraits, landscapes, and environments of Tirana. In the early stages of his artistic career, Sali Shijaku worked according to traditional realistic methods. However, later on, after studying his pictorial models, he sought expressive discoveries through pronounced color relationships, until he achieved monumental and succinct perceptions where drawing and color gained high artistic expressive values. Sali Shijaku brought new modern and contemporary elements to the Albanian art of the 60s of the 20th century. He has participated in national exhibitions and has been awarded prizes. He has opened several solo exhibitions where his researches in form stand out, especially in elements such as composition, color, light, and shadow. His works are preserved in the National Gallery of Art. He received the Republic Award of the First Degree (twice), Second Degree (twice), and Third Degree. He passed away in Tirana, in 2022. (In the photo: Sali Shijaku)
Text: Albanian encyclopedic dictionary – Vol. 3 , Academy of Sciences of Albania, “Kristalina-KH”, Tirana, 2009, page 2456-2457.
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Graphic processing: AHCF
