Kaido Ole / Marko Mӓetamm / Eglė Ridikaitė: Artscape: ESTONIA

Part of the Vilnius – European capital of culture 2009 program ARTscape is a large-scale project that involves contemporary art, cinema and jazz, co-organized by some of the most qualified cultural institutions: “Kino pavasaris”, “Vilnius jazz” and Gallery “Vartai”. Throughout the year 2009 and in the beginning of 2010 these three experienced institutions will be presenting the contemporary culture scenes of twelve European countries, the cities of which are, were, or will become European capitals of culture. The three different media – art, cinema and music – will outline the diagrams of dynamic cultural processes.

Artscape: ESTONIA

 As February is the month when Estonia celebrates its Independence Day, ARTSCAPE invites to get to know contemporary art, jazz and cinema from this Baltic neighbor. It’s capital Tallinn will become the European Capital of Culture in 2011. Gallery “Vartai” presents an exhibitio with Estonians artists Kaido Ole and Marko Mӓetamm joined by a Lithuanian Eglė Ridikaitė. Contemporary creators do not set a mission for themselves to solve the problems of the humankind, illuminate us so as to reach the "higher realm". It is rather the opposite: they impertinently confront us with the routine existence condensing the colours and infusing it with absurd, violence or irony. Kaido Ole in his works shows his own helplessness while trying to make the “right” decision and discloses the illusion of “free choice”. Works of Marko Maetamm try to solve his personal problems, so familiar to everyone. Filled with black humor they transform everyday situations into paranoic nightmares: child‘s bed becomes an instrument of torture and naive cartoon – a horror movie. These two artists together represented their country in the 50th Venice Biennale and Marko Maetamm represented Estonia in the last 52nd Venice Biennale. In her stencils-like canvas Eglė Ridikaitė converts „uniform beauties“ of the block-of flats into meaningless patterns that were “admired“ by almost every inhabitant of the Soviet suburbias.