Two galleries, an artists’ association and a contemporary art platform are representing Estonian artists at the ArtVilnius contemporary art fair

Okapi Gallery, Haus Gallery, the Estonian Union of Photography Artists and Noar, a web platform for contemporary art, are participating in ArtVilnius, taking place from June 8th to June 11th, 2017.

 

The 8th edition of ArtVilnius will introduce around 60 galleries and art institutions from more than 20 different European countries. This year’s fair will focus on video art and a collection of works from one of Europe’s oldest video art festivals – Videonale – will be brought from Germany. The fair is organized by the Lithuanian Art Gallerists’ Association under the artistic direction of Diana Stomienė.

 

Okapi gallery is joining ArtVilnius for the second time. This year’s presentation will take the form of a collaborative ‘M_M_M_M Project’ by photographer Temuri Hvingija and blacksmiths Rait Siska and Risto Tali. Introducing a variety of techniques and technologies derived from photography, blacksmithing, and music, ‘M_M_M_M Project’ also includes a performance by sound artist Erik Alalooga.

 

Participating in a fair for the first time, the contemporary art platform Noar will be exhibiting an interactive sound installation ‘Artists’ Room’ by Juhan Soomets, who won the first Baltic Young Artist Award in 2016, at ArtVilnius. Soomets’s installation will be also on view at Tallinn Art Week open-air art exhibition on June 17th at the Freedom Square, Tallinn.

 

The Estonian Union of Photography Artists (Foku) will feature works by Tanja Muravskaja and the recently deceased Anna-Stina Treumund. The curated display will question the concepts of obedience, discipline, and being civil. Tanja Muravskaja’s works are dealing with the notions of national identity and nationalism, while Treumund addresses women’s sexuality and gender consciousness from a feminist perspective.

 

Haus gallery will be exhibiting figurative paintings by artists Maarit Murka, Tõnis Saadoja, Mall Nukke, August Künnapu, Maria Sidljarevitš and Juss Piho at the ArtVilnius fair. The central theme of these works is introspection and humans in their surrounding environments.

 

Part of the public programme of ArtVilnius is the presentation of the Estonian art index project by the Estonian Contemporary Art Development Center in collaboration with Riivo Anton. The aim of developing an art index has been to create an easily accessible database of transactions that will be of great help to anyone on the art market. The presentation takes place at 3.30 pm on Saturday, 10th of June.

 

ArtVilnius will be held at the Lithuanian Exhibition and Congress Centre LITEXPO (Laisvės ave 5, Vilnius).

 

The participation of Estonian galleries and projects in Vilnius is supported by the European Regional Development Fund and the Estonian Contemporary Art Development Center.