pov: somewhere in a certain place

pov: somewhere in a certain place

Curator - Kertu Rannula

The exhibition symbolically travels through Estonia, making stops in four small towns. Along the route Adavere-Kanepi-Väätsa-Palivere young artists reflect on the everyday life of their hometowns and personal development stories. 

In the midst of wastelands, they contemplate growth and identity, dreams and desires, confrontation and reconciliation, opportunities and their absence. Sometimes, between yawning clearings, there are places where one feels small and alone, reliant on the vast and distant. On the other hand, viewed from a distance, the wilderness offers ample space for expanding fields of thought.

Autobiography intertwines with fiction, creating a dialogue between poetry and everyday life within the exhibition. The artists juxtapose their experiences with urban-formed perceptions of rural life.

Tõnis Laurson recalls the gap year after high school, often finding himself as a driver for local guys with BMWs. The journeys along the long roads of Läänemaa became a necessary pastime in an environment that seemed devoid of prospects. Tõnis Laurson (born 1996) is an Estonian artist and writer from Läänemaa.  He graduated with a BA in Graphics (2019) and an MA in Contemporary Art (2022) from the Estonian Academy of Arts. As an artist, he feels most at home in graphic mediums, including drawing and design. Professionally, he is a screen printer and often incorporates printmaking into his art. Laurson’s work addresses personal and social themes, approached with both humour and criticism. He is also interested in aesthetic phenomena and documentation.

Rebeca Zhukovich reflects on generational patterns and conflicts. Inspired by the constant comparison with elders, she examines the development of a young person in a small town, where anonymity is absent and community expectations are deeply rooted in family background. Rebeca Zhukovich (born 1999), is an artist, musician, composer and poet whose main mediums are video and installation. At the core of her work is an interest in the body and human experience, which often enters into dialogue with folkloric and historical materials in the context of the digital age. She is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in audiovisual composition at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre and has furthered her studies in media art and animation at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of Ghent in Belgium. Zhukovich’s works have been presented in Estonia, Italy, France and Belgium. Last year, her work UPĖ was selected for the MA/IN 2023 International Electroacoustic Music and Digital Arts Festival. Since 2022, she has been a member of the Estonian Youth Contemporary Art Association (ENKKL).

liina pääsuke challenges stereotypes about rural life and reinterprets the dynamics between the centre and the periphery. Finding potential in often-overlooked places, she shapes the community and creates new mythologies. liina pääsuke (born in Rapla, 1990) is a performative context artist whose artistic education began in the 10th-grade art history class at Old Town Educational College and ignited in 2013 at the Nancy Nakamura’s Shelf of Ideas. She has participated in several international group exhibitions and organised various group and solo exhibitions, including her first anniversary exhibition Happy Happy Hard Times!!! in 2015 at the Estonian Järva Defence District’s Training Centre in Lõõla, Järvamaa.  She graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna with a degree in installation and sculpture, worked for years as a cleaner, and currently operates as Kolkaplika in Viljandi, Estonia.

Birgit Kaleva captures the daily life behind the counter at the pub Temp ja Taar. The pub serves as a connecting hub, both within the family and for the local community. Birgit Kaleva (born 1996), known artistically as moto erotica (2020), is a freelance photo artist currently living in her hometown of Kanepi, where her heart belongs. While studying styling at Tartu Art School (2019), she discovered a passion for photography. Kaleva completed photography studies at the Pallas University of Applied Sciences. Having participated in several group exhibitions, she is often guided by introspection. Self-irony, self-image, and defining one’s role in society repeatedly emerge in her works. Kaleva sees beauty in everyday ugliness and chaos; her work process is usually spontaneous and driven by emotions, using raw and bold techniques. Her future plans are currently unknown, but perhaps someone else knows and can tell her.