Holger Loodus' exhibition 'Journey to the End of the World' at the Art Hall Gallery

2017 09 08 — 2017 10 08 at Tallinn Art Hall Gallery
Author Echo Gone Wrong
Published in Events in Estonia
Holger Loodus. Journey to the End of the World. Image from the film. 2017

Holger Loodus. Journey to the End of the World. Image from the film. 2017

Holger Loodus’s exhibition Journey to the End of the World at the Art Hall Gallery revolves around three events that initially seem unrelated: the trip of Matthew Henson, a black explorer, to the North Pole with Robert Peary in 1909; the simultaneous arrival of artist Joseph Beuys’s shamanistic myth creation and social activism on the 20th-century art scene more than half a century later; and the anonymous flows of refugees, which during a short but intensive period, moved through the Arctic region from Russia to Norway two years ago. These events are connected by the North Pole, the beginning and end of journeys; and the various means, which that have changed over time, for arriving there.

“Everything recurs” and “everything is connected to everything else” are just overused and worn-out phrases until they get under your skin for some reason. For Holger Loodus, using the theme of travelling to give meaning to a seemingly insignificant meaning field started in 2016, when he completed his exhibition called Urlaub. In Journey, the travels of the artist’s characters unravel into parallels and connections, into less or more valid generalisations and stories. By squinting his eyes to sharpen his vision, but also without hiding his laugh lines, he views the fate of his heroes and overdramatised them. It is better to keep your head as clear as possible and your eyes as open as possible, if the stable ground underfoot is nothing more than a drifting mountain of ice.

The artist thanks: Kaie and Rein Loodus, Sander Põldsaar, Mari-Liis Rebane, Tanel Paliale, Hans Lillemets, Marko Sarv, Anna-Liisa Liiver, George Ahulo, Renae Rain, Erle Jusar, Timothy Moutsinga, Igor Ted Moutsinga, Tarvo Porroson, Tiina Ubar, Rain Tolk, Raili Keiv, Andreas Altmäe, Kristel Altmäe, Leho Vilu, Kristi Kongi, Rene Satsi, Triinu Tikas, Anu-Laura Tuttelberg, Andres Teiss, Reio Remma, Heiko Kask, Meel Paliale, Freda Purik, Ahti Lill; as well as the Cultural Endowment of Estonia, Kuukulgur Film, the Seaplane Harbour, Nõmme Lennusadam, and the Nõmme Snow Park.

Holger Loodus graduated from the Estonian Academy of Arts in restoration (BA 2008) and painting (MA 2012). And he continued his studies in media art in Karlsruhe, Germany. His first solo exhibition 2015 Portraits took place in Tallinn at the Draakon Gallery in 2102. He lives and works in Tallinn.