This series was painted for a group exhibition “The Edge of Being” that took place at Tartu Art House in summer 2018. The other participating artists were talented Indrek Aavik and Kaspar Tamsalu. The show was curated by Joanna Hoffmann.

“BabaLand” depicts the edge of my hometown Tartu. It shows the life at the gardening plots settled mostly by Soviet era immigrants. Each spring the place comes to life. Tiny wheelcarts appear on the muddy streets and roll towards the beautiful yards and elaborate shacks placed on the city’s no man’s land. The place is most busy during the warm summer weeks. The work finally settles in October and the place succumbs to winter sleep. Each year the suburbia creeps closer and the residents get older, but the mythical place persists.

Big Baba 2018, oil and acrylics on canvas, 150 x 225cm | 59 x 89 in

Big Neon Green Bush 2018, oil and acrylics on canvas, 150 x 225cm | 59 x 89 in

Container 2018, oil on canvas, 90 x 120 cm | 35 x 47 in

The Road 2018, oil on canvas, 90 x 120 cm | 35 x 47 in

Pigeon Antenna 2018, oil and acrylics on canvas, 100 x 100 cm | 39 x 39 in

Stone City 2018, oil and acrylics on canvas, 100 x 135 cm | 39 x 53 in

Purple Bush 2018, oil and acrylics on canvas, 100 x 135 cm | 39 x 53 in

Defences 2018, oil and acrylics on canvas, 100 x 100 cm | 39 x 39 in

 

Photos from the exhibiton at Tartu Art House. The car wrecks are painted by Indrek Aavik and portraits by Kaspar Tamsalu: