Evelīna Deičmane. Lidia’s garden

2013 06 11 — 2013 06 27 at Garden gallery of Riga Dome cathedral
Author Echo Gone Wrong
Published in Events in Latvia

From 11 to 27 June artist Evelīna Deičmane’s (1978) solo exhibition „Lidia’s garden” is open at the garden gallery of Riga Dome cathedral. The exhibition comprises spiral form objects or holds, jingled by wind and rain as musical instruments, translations of text fragments from artist’s correspondence with a Moldavian woman named Lidia as well as a dimensional drawing. The sign of infinity is chosen as a symbolical axis of the exhibition, and is expressed as an ideal, sheltering circle, the rotation of life and death, beginning and end in both nature and human life, the philosophical fusion of carpe diem and memento mori in the garden of the Dome cathedral.

In the dawn of the 5th May just before the sunrise the circle was drawn around the Dome garden, in order to start construction of geometrical objects, carrying soil, water and setting plants. The artist’s ideas flourished by examining the history and architecture of Riga Dome building, and researching the character of particular exhibition premises. The correspondence with eighty year old and wise granny named Lidia, whom artist happened to meet at the artists’ workshop in Moldova, organized by curator Odrija Fisere, also served as an impetus for inspiration. As the result an instrumental ensemble of symmetrical spiral-form water basins, formed and performed by nature, are blossoming out in the garden, arranged according to the layout of the wells in the garden, the soil is smelling sweetly and flowers are blooming and withering away, while the wind blows in metal horns. Artist’s subjective intuitive interest in traditions, stories, rituals and the places of special energy have acquired universal character here, fused with Evelina’s urge to incorporate the explored object in a new, pure form.  With her sound objects and installations, drawings that quite recently have become part of artist’s exhibitions, as well as photographs, multimedia artist Evelīna Deičmane performs and exhibits very successfully in Latvia, Germany and elsewhere in the world. The crucial tool and means of art for Evelīna Deičmane is sound, it interests and inspires her to even more extent that the visual world. Frequent correspondence with friends, family and casually met people are very important to Evelīna, and most often have outlined new projects. Recently also fairy tales, legends, stories, folklore and national tradition have served as relevant source of inspiration.

In 2007 Evelīna Deičmane graduated with the Master’s degree from the Latvian Academy of Arts, Faculty of Visual Communication, and has also studied at the Arts University (UDK) in Berlin. Up to now  Deičmane has given five solo shows and participated in group exhibitions in Latvia, Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Sweden, the Czech Republic and elsewhere. In 2006 the artist took part at the 15th Sydney Biennale, in 2007 – at the 2nd Moscow Biennale, in 2008 – at the European Contemporary Art Biennale „Manifest 7”, but in 2009 Evelīna Deičmane together with Miks Mitrevics represented Latvia at the 53rd Venice International Biennale. Evelīnas Deičmane’s art works can be found in various collections in Latvia, also in the collection of prospective Contemporary Art Museum, as well as in Germany, France and Australia.

 

Text: Šelda Puķīte

Curator of the exhibition department of the project My Dome