Nina Bunjevac

Athough Canadian born, Nina Bunjevac spent her formative years in Yugoslavia, where she began her art education before returning to Canada at onset of the war of the 1990s. She continued her education in graphic design at the iconic Art Centre of Central Technical School in Toronto, subsequently graduating from the Drawing and Painting department at OCAD.

After a decade of pursuing the fine arts career she discovered the passion for the narrative through sculpture installation work, eventually returning to her childhood passion for comics.

Nina’s comics have been published in a number of international periodicals and anthologies, including The National Post, Le Monde Diplomatique, ArtReview and Best American Comics. Her first book Heartless (2012, Conundrum Press, Nova Scotia) won the Doug Wright Award in the Nipper category for the best debut. Her second book, Fatherland (2014, Jonathan Cape, London) has reached international acclaim, appearing on the New York Times best-seller list and receiving the Doug Wright Award in the Best Book category; it was also shortlisted for the PACA region Literary Award in France.

Her artwork has been included in a number of exhibitions, both in Canada and internationally, with the most recent being a part of Comix Creatrix, and exhibit of women comics creators at The House of Illustration in London UK, curated by Olivia Ahmad and Paul Gravett, and The Art Gallery of Toronto with the 2014 installation Out of Fatherland, and commissioned mural pieces for The Idea of North, curated by Andrew Hunter and Steve Martin.

She lives in Toronto where she divides her time between comics, illustration, teaching and fine arts.