On July 5, 2019, as a part of Latvian Centenary programme a number of meaningful events to explore the emergence of professional ceramic art in the Baltic States with a view to outlining the historical stages of its evolution and tracing their impact on the current global image of contemporary ceramic art will take place at Daugavpils Mark Rothko Art Centre. The events are organised in cooperation with Latvian Centre for Contemporary Ceramics.
Lately, the world is buzzing with talk of a ceramic renaissance. The medium of ceramics is increasingly acknowledged and presented on a par with other disciplines in their contemporary forms and displays. Ceramics is touted as both the “new video” and the “taste of the decade”, but this exuberance raises concerns about a potential crisis, which may strike unexpectedly right after the long-overdue recognition. Whether ceramic art has already experienced a renaissance in the Baltic States and should be wary of a new crisis, only time will tell. Meanwhile, the exhibition BASICS shows the actual state of play in contemporary ceramic art in the Baltic States, which could become a solid milestone for the future.
In this exhibition, each of the Baltic States is represented by different generations, including the veterans who spearheaded developments in the field back in the day and the younger crop of ceramic artists. To participate in the exhibition, each artist could apply with one work. A panel of judges from all three Baltic States evaluated the applications. 71 artists were chosen to participate in the exhibition.
In addition to the exhibition opening, a conference will be held on July 5, which will present the historical and theoretical aspects of the Baltic States, exploring the development of professional ceramic art in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, as well as reflecting on the future paths and directions. The conference will be attended by Dace Ļaviņa, art historian, Curator of the Latvian Ceramics Collection at The Museum of Decorative Arts and Design, Ieva Bertašūte Grosbaha, ceramist, researcher, doctoral student of Vilnius Art Academy, as well as Estonian artist and researcher Juss Heinsalu.
Participants of exhibition:
Latvia: Kaspars Geiduks, Katerina Geiduka, Lilija Zeiļa, Ilona Romule, Sandra Ulmane, Inuta Graudiņa, Una Gura, Žanete Žvīgure, Valda Podkalne, Haralds Jegodzienskis, Iveta Aigare, Inese Margēviča, Una Mjurka, Dainis Lesiņš, Kārlis Knopkens, Kristīne Nuķe- Pantelejeva, Olga Melehina, Kristīne Lazdāne, Inese Brants, Juta Rindina, Sanita Mickus, Elita Taube, Līga Skariņa, Andris Vēzis, Ilze Emse-Grīnberga, Orests Misjko, Kate Māliņa, Jekaterina Sazonova, Tatjana Krivenkova, Rūdis Pētersons, Elina Titane, Agnese Sunepa
Lithuania: Vilija Kinderaviciute, Vida Juškaitė, Danutė Garlavičienė, Solveiga Gutaute, Justina Kildisyte, Milena Pirštelienė, Mingaile Mikelenaite, Eglė Einikytė-Narkevičienė, Monika Gedrimaitė, Audrius Janušonis, Agnė Šemberaitė, Rūta Šipalytė, Jurgita Jasinskaite, Rasa Justaitė-Gecevičienė, Rima Leipuvienė, Jolanta Kvasyte, Danutė Jazgevičiūtė, Dalia Laučkaitė-Jakimavičienė, Kristina Paulauskaitė- Ramonaitienė
Estonia: Annika Teder, Kärt Seppel, Karin Kalman, Margit Terasmees, Eva Berg, Marget Tafel – Vahtra, Kylli Kõiv, Jarõna Ilo, Kersti Laanmaa, Laura Põld, Sander Raudsepp, Elize Hiiop, Lauri Kilusk, Üllo Karro, Helena Tuudelepp, Kadi Hektor, Merike Hallik, Anne Türn, Rave Puhm, Urmas Puhkan
Valentīns Petjko