Riga Gallery
14.06.2007 — 14.07.2007




Ilze Avotiņa’s solo exhibition “The Garden of Memories” is on view at Riga Gallery 1st and 2nd floor. In 2005 Avotiņa won the competition organised by the Ministry of Culture, received the grant of the State Culture Capital Foundation and spent two months at Cité Internationale des Arts workshop in Paris. There the artist envisaged the show now exhibited at Riga Gallery.

Works displayed on both floors of the Gallery are created during the last two years. Part of them was made in Paris, working in both open air and in the studio, part – after her return to Latvia. 11 canvases, including 2 large-size triptychs, one diptych and miniatures made as studies in the workshop – these are mediated impressions of Paris, its particular mood and charm.

The title “The Garden of Memories” expresses the artist’s appreciation and passion for Paris, its architecture, wide space and particular French spirit. Paintings in this exhibition are a kind of documented events important for the artist. Besides many famous French gardens, like Palace of Versailles, Luxembourg Garden, Palais Royal Garden, Tuileries Garden, Parc Monceau, there are the artist’s imaginary gardens – Garden of Memories, Garden of Light, Garden of Love. Famous symbols of Paris are also present, like the view towards the Sacre-Coeur Church in the painting “The Heart of Paris”, typical Parisian architectural details – guarding angels of the Palais Royal, gryphons on the roof of Notre-Dame, Paris as the city of love with casually noticed lovers on the balcony in the work “I Love”. Paintings reveal romantic scenes from Parisian life (“Once More”, “Stars over the Pompidou Centre”), urban scenes with gardens (“The Garden of Memories”, “Exhibition of Fountains in the Luxembourg Garden”), bridges, the River Seine, still lifes with trinkets and flowers bought in Parisian antique fair (“Roses of Parc Monceau”).

One of the show’s title works printed on the invitation as well is black-and-white composition “Once More” depicting a Parisian scene with a 18th century Venetian carousel in the square by the Eiffel Tower. The work represents movement on a galloping carousel horse and wind in the girls’ hair. The romantic carousel is like a dream about a real horse- ride in girls’ fantasies. It is like returning to the past – the romantic 18th century – and return to childhood memories as well. It may be the artist’s own return to Paris visited for the first time in 1991. Then Paris inspired her to use the bright, luminescent colours.

This time Avotiņa has seen Paris in grey tones and a little hazy. Unique combinations of luminescent colours are abandoned for the sake of reality. Avoiding intruding the city’s pale grey landscape with her typical sense of colour, she painted Paris in all nuances of grey, lighting up only some colourful accents here and there. All paintings are penetrated by a mix of lines, dots and ornamental arabesques, creating a kind of lace ornament entwining silhouettes of buildings, interiors and figures (“The Island of Love”). For the artist known from particularly bright, luminescent tones it was a sort of challenge – to paint in grey, retaining the typical individual mode of expression.

Ilze Avotiņa is a renowned figure in Latvian art. Her painting is based on French Post-Impressionist principles, largely derived from the use of pure colours and their mutual combinations. The artist has taken up the most varied genres in bright, luminescent colouring, painting decorative ornamental landscapes, still lifes, figural compositions and portraits. Ilze Avotiņa’s enthusiasm for French art has a long history – during the study years she turned to French Impressionist painting. Avotiņa was particularly interested in sunlight, inspired by Claude Monet’s paintings. Then she became fascinated by French Fauvist art. Already in the study years Avotiņa created her individual style, synthesising influences of French painting with original discoveries. Besides mentioned Impressionist attitude towards light and Fauvist brightness of colours Avotiņa’s paintings blended supple lines typical of Art Nouveau and Puantilist dotting technique. Vibration of luminescent colours created Op Art-like visual effects.
The exhibition “Fauvist Repercussions. Latvian Painting: 1910 – 1980” clearly demonstrated significant influences of French school upon Latvian art in general, including Avotiņa’s painting that were exhibited as well. The exhibition was part of the festival “Un printemps Français” (“The French Spring”), being on view at the Latvian National Art Museum Exhibition Hall Arsenāls from 22 March to 13 May 2007.

The artist held solo exhibitions at Riga Gallery (1994, 2000), Artists’ Union of Latvia Gallery (1997, 2002), Gallery Vartai in Vilnius (1997) etc. She participated in significant exhibitions at Zwolle Municipal Museum (2002), State Museum of Art, Exhibition Hall Arsenāls, Eduard Nakhamkin Fine Arts Gallery in New York (1989), exhibition “Post-Traditionalism” at Central Artists’ House in Moscow (1989) etc.

Ilze Avotiņa’s works are found in collections:
Latvian National Art Museum, Riga, Latvia Artists’ Union of Latvia collection, Riga, Latvia
State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia Private collections in Latvia and abroad


Ilze Avotiņa (born 1952) has important place into Latvian art scene. Her paintings are based on the principles of postimpresionism, where is important to use clear colours and their combinations. Artist has turned to different genres of painting - ornamentally decorative landscapes, still natures, figural compositions, portraits in a bright, luminescence colour scheme.

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Riga Gallery
20, Aspazijas Blvd20, Aspazijas Blvd
Riga, LV-1050
Latvia
TEL : +371 7225887
rigas_galerija@ apollo.lv
www.rigasgalerija.com