VINCENTS GALLERY
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
ELĪNA KRIMA
Represented country: Latvia
Elīna Krima studied graphic art at the Latvia Academy of Arts. The conceptual core of her work attends to
the modern digital environment, its flow and interpretation – theway humans handle archives of digital forms and generalized memories that are stored in bundles of pixels. Created with great patience and care her letterpress
prints in mixed media technique contrasts with the actual real-life context inviting to view the everyday digital experience from a different perspective. In 2018 Elīna’s
unique vision earned her the “Brederlo – von Sengbusch’’ grant. Her work has been represented in numerous group exhibitions and art projects. In 2020 she presented
her first solo exhibition “Screenshot”.
OTTO ZITTMANIS
Represented country: Latvia
Otto Zitmanis studied painting at Janis Rozentāls School of Art and the Latvia Academy of Arts (2004). The stark contrasts of colour, dramatically saturated
depictions of human body with an authentic touch of irony earned him praise and recognition from the very early days of his career. Otto has established a strong
presence in the world of art through solo and group exhibitions in Latvia and abroad. His works of art have been selected for the National Museum’s permanent collection
and numerous private art collections in Latvia and worldwide.
MADARA KVĒPA
Represented country: Latvia
Madara Kvēpa studied painting at the Latvia Academy of Arts (2019) where she is currently pursuing Master’s degree. She has also studied arts in Milan, Italy. Since 2016 her artwork has been represented in several group exhibitions; among them the emerging artists’ exhibition “Synthesis.
Research of reality through movement, development and contradictions” (2020, curated by Auguste Petre) and five solo exhibitions. With her interpretation of Daina Riņķe’s painting “Our house” (Mūsu māja) Madara Kvēpa participated in the project “Sound needs art” (2018, hosted by the foundation “Mākslai vajag telpu”). Her abstract paintings are sensitive and informative (yet not forceful) - they
reveal the artist’s line of thought and leave space for viewer’s imagination. Her passion about language and colour reflectively manifests itself in her artwork and speaks of consistent and determined workstyle. Madara Kvēpa’s paintings and experiments in three-dimensional art are not
coincidental – they are instantiations of clear thought and resolution.
MARTA VEINBERGA
Represented country: Latvia
Marta Veinberga is a visual artist living and working in Riga, Latvia. In her paintings and three-dimensional work she explores found and readymade materials. Her recent favourite is supermarket prize stickers. Although the material is often the initial impulse, every individual work builds up as a conceptual network between the general idea or the theme, the material, visual language and sometimes the creative process itself. Interest in the physical environment as a reflection of human character in historical and social context is central to Veinberga's work. Originally prize stickers were an advertising token one receives in supermarkets, gas stations and convenience stores for every 5 - 10 euros spent. They are attached to a card and finally earn an opportunity to buy products with discount. Many people think they already have too much stuff and just throw them out. Others collect them with no clear purpose. For Marta Veinberga these stickers serve as an upcycled painting material and it turned out there are many who find this particular use most reasonable and donate their stickers to artists.
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INGRĪDA IVANE
Represented country: Latvia
Ingrīda Ivane was born in 1985 in Riga. Since young age she has been interested in culture, art and literature and consequently chose to study theory of culture at the Academy of Culture where she earned BA and MA degrees. Her interest lies not only in the esthetic dimension of heritage material but also its historical aspects. While studying textile arts, Ingrīda Ivane further mastered her visual and technical skills and is currently pursuing MA degree at the Art Academy of Latvia, department of painting. Since 2013 she has been participating in different “Zīmējumu teātris” (“Theatre of drawings”) performances for children and adults. Since 2014 her work has been exhibited in various group exhibitions in Latvia and abroad – in Estonia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Italy and Australia as well as four solo exhibitions in Latvia and two in Estonia.
Last year will remain in our memories as “time between four walls”. For me as an artist this feeling of seclusion provokes contradictory emotions – on one hand, it is a normal, commonplace phenomenon to spend time alone and work in one’s rooms. On the other hand, inability to isolate yourself from the world and the global anxiety, makes you balance between ultimate harmony and fear, between the safe, familiar walls and feeling of imprisonment. Already some time ago I got interested in the relationship between person and space and started exploring old, abandoned buildings and the underlying stories.
For me buildings are like living beings. The cracks in the walls, depleting colour, scraps of wallpaper do not differ much from the signs that time leaves in people’s faces. Stairs, windows, wallpaper and tiles, alcoves which were once made for furniture – all of these elements were once part of a living space but now have become useless. Now we have more time to stop, observe the surrounding environment. It is time to pay attention to what earlier seemed meaningless and under a magnifying glass track the cracks and lines to find piece in the world of fantasy created in the strokes and drippings of paint by imaginary and perceived reflections.
Last year's memories of many will remain in the four walls much more often and for longer than ever before. As an artist, this feeling of seclusion gives me two emotions - on the one hand, it is a self-evident, everyday phenomenon, to spend time alone, working within the four walls of the workshop. On the other hand, the inability to completely isolate oneself from the events of the outside world and the turmoil, ignorance and various other emotions that surrounds it, this mood is balanced between absolute harmony and fear, between secure, familiar walls and a sense of imprisonment. My interest in the relationship between the individual and space has aroused me in the past, researching old, abandoned buildings and their stories.
The building feels like living things. Cracks in the walls, peeling paint in places, crumbs of wallpaper, all this is not much different from the signs that time leaves on people's faces.
Stairs, windows, wallpaper and tiles on the walls, various niches that were once intended for furniture - all these elements that once formed a room are now left unused. Now is the time to stop, look at the environment around you, it's time to pay attention to what was previously unimportant, how to trace cracks and lines under a magnifying glass, find comfort in a fantasy world conjured by various images seen and imagined in strokes and drains.
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BAIBA ĀBELĪTE
Represented country: Latvia
In Baiba Ābelīte’s view art is a plural system, which like a mosaic develops from fragments of recent history – student riots in 1970s, fluxus, minimalism, rise of conceptualism in 1980s, multidisciplinary art in 1990s, new media and performances. She has been captivated by and interested in the equality of all media, multidisciplinarity, feminism, kverism and ecology. Her artwork surpasses the limits of traditional decorative art. She is exploring various approaches – mixed media, installations, performances. She organizes and holds masterclasses. Materials in her work play a significant role since they reflect by symbolic means the impact humanity and urbanization have on nature. Her artwork uses mixed media materials from various industrial items – neobond steel sheets (also recycled) as the basis, experimental metallic colours, varnish, epoxy resin and finally – etching. With this method the painting acquires additional dimensions – the painting on steel sheet changes depending on light, new colours come out and the previously invisible becomes visible. It feels like paintings live their own life. Often artwork depicts future scenarios and invite us to reflect. Her work represents the globalization trends of the 21st century and the problem of urbanization. She talks about the now-and-here directly, laconically, truthfully. The industrial problem in her works has been investigated within the realms of the theme of ships and shipping.
AIJA PUTNIŅA
Represented country: Latvia
Aija Putniņa studied graphic art at Janis Rozentāls School of Art and painting at the Latvia Academy of Arts. Her artwork is characterized by clarity of form, volatility and harmonious tonality of colour. Focusing on precision and detail the artist reveals visual aspects that can only be captured in the interplay of the human eye and mind thus adding another dimension to the seemingly mundane phenomena. Her work has been displayed in various group art exhibitions. Currently she is involved in performance art projects.
ANNA PANTEJEVA
Represented country: Latvia
Anna Pantejeva studied environmental art at the Latvia Academy of Arts but has recently found her creative expression in painting and poetry. Her work exudes femininity infringing on perfectionism. Fragility and idiosyncrasy of human body are depicted in graceful silhouettes. The artist explores various life experiences and transforms them into lyrical stories. Her work of art has been represented in solo and group exhibitions in Latvia and abroad.
VERONIKA FROLOVA
Represented country: Latvia
Veronika Frolova has earned an MA degree in painting from the Latvia Academy of Arts. Since 2019 she has been teaching drawing to the Academy students. In her artwork she depicts invisible, unknown and possibly non-existent phenomena in a peculiar and unique drawing technique. Her imagery invites self-reflection. The body parts in her work are mystical yet they acquire a natural outline which contrasts with geometrical elements and deliver a multilayered narrative. Since 2010 her artwork has been displayed in various exhibitions; in 2011 – in a solo exhibition. Veronika also works in the area of book design – in 2017 she illustrated a children’s book “The Bear-Slayer. Return.”.
GITA SPRINCE
Represented country: Latvia
Gita Sprince studied art at Rūjiena Art School followed by an undergraduate program in painting at the Latvia Academy of Arts and currently - a postgraduate program in painting. Her unique mixed media technique encounters exchange of coincidence and intention with an emphasis on subjective experiences expressed in abstract rhythms of colour and texture. The minimalist forms of expression omit real imagery and consequently yield monumental compositions with emphasis on the dynamics of merger. Her artwork has been represented in several group exhibitions in Latvia while some of her work has traveled to Germany, USA, Thailand and elsewhere in the world.
DENIS PRASLOV
Country represented: Russia
Denis Prasolov is a sculptor and restorer based in St Petersburg. His educational background includes St Petersburg National Academy (State Art - Industrial Academy), Weissensee School of Art and University of Eastern Finland. Together with sculptor Pavel Ignatyev he founded the creative collective ‘Masterskaja #7’. He has created a number of urban monuments set up in Russian cities. In his small form sculpture Denis Prasolov primarily depicts the animal world and illustrates various mythological, historical and literary narratives as well as comments on biological processes and the scientific view of natural phenomena. Inspired by the sculptural traditions of the 18th and 19th centuries, he combines fictitious stylisations with the language of natural forms. Denis Prasolov artwork is displayed in State Russian Museum in St Petersburg, in the St Petersburg Erarta Museum of Contemporary Art and the St Petersburg State Museum of Urban Sculpture. The Signet Bank Art Collection represents 10 sculptures from the series ‘First Crew’. The series is dedicated to animals used in space exploration in the Soviet Union. ‘First Crew’ is a tribute to the anonymous animals and plants, largely unknown to the general public, who indirectly helped the Man to conquer the outer space.
FRANCIS ALYS
Country represented: Belgium
Francis Alÿs is a Belgian contemporary artist who associates his life with Mexico. With a background in architecture, his multidisciplinary art practice evokes anthropological and geopolitical motifs. Francis Alÿs has created a great variety of art projects – actions, installations, videos, paintings and drawings. In his most well-known performance called Sometimes Making Something Leads to Nothing the artist dragged a block of ice along the streets of Mexico City until it melted. His works are represented in the collections of such globally recognised art institutions as the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Tate Modern in London and MoMA in New York. The Signet Bank Art Collection features a photo-documentation of Francis Alÿs’s performance as part of Manifesto X. The idea of performance comes from his childhood, when he and his brother had planned a drive from Belgium to the Soviet Union in a similar car which eventually broke down and put an end to the journey. The crashed green car featured in the photo-documentation signifies collapse and reflects Alÿs’s personal attitude to the policy pursued by the Russian government.