From March 8 to June 8, art space Civita Nova of the Concert Hall will feature the exhibition of drawings, pastels, and watercolors by artist Māris Ernests Uldriķis (1939–2017): ‘Māris Uldriķis. Subtle Matter’. The exhibition is an important event in the 400th anniversary of Liepāja, as it is dedicated to the work of the son of the famous painter Teodors Uldriķis.
The artist's previous major exhibition, ‘Māris Uldriķis. My World’, took place in 2014. It was a great temptation to give a similar title to this exhibition, as the uniqueness and directness of Uldriķis’ artistic language form a solitary unity, a world of his own, characterized by a particular concentration and absolute immersion into the process and substance of the artwork creation. For Māris Uldriķis, painting and drawing was a way of breathing, of living. It was the only life he knew, and he was a true expert at it. Art was the essence of his world.
However, such a title would not be true, because the works of Māris Uldriķis are not only part of his world – it is also a world shared by his colleagues and friends, and, for several years now, by me as well. Thanks to the artist's friend and supporter Irina Tīre, I have uncovered an entire universe created by Uldriķis.
One might call this exhibition a dream. It is the dream of Irina Tīre and many Liepāja artists: for younger generations to get to know not only the heritage of Teodors Uldriķis, but also the special talent of his son, the last of the Uldriķis family. Dreams do come true, and visitors of the Great Amber will have an opportunity to view this unique but still under-appreciated artist from Liepāja. It is a great pleasure that Uldriķis, as a true Liepājan, has the privilege to address and find his audience during the 400th anniversary year of Liepāja.
The drawings, pastels, watercolors, and sketches are owned by the artist's friends. The exhibition does not feature artworks from the collection of the Liepāja Museum or the St. Petersburg State Museum Tsarskoe Selo Collection, which stores paintings and drawings by Māris Uldriķis. It was extremely difficult to select the works for the exhibition, because, upon a closer inspection, almost each of them has some brilliant detail to it. Alexandr Nekrasov, the head of the Tsarskoe Selo Collection and a great admirer of Uldriķis' talent, called him one of the top artists of Europe today. Since 2012, the St. Petersburg Museum has preserved an important collection of works by the artist, which the viewers of this exhibition can see both in a slide show and an album of reproductions published in the year of the artist's death – in 2017.
Experts of Māris Uldriķis' talent describe his works as conceptual, laconic, and highly sophisticated. I can agree and add that the way he represents the world, the way he paints and draws, reveals a desire to discover the essence of every single thing. Just like Plato, who came to the revelation that the Idea is a Form behind each thing. For Uldriķis, too, the world of things is secondary and dependent on the world of ideas. The world he depicts in his artworks is a subtle matter, devised with intimacy and delicacy characteristic of the artist's style. The idea is right next to matter, and it must be revealed!
What is the golden key that opens the door to Uldriķis' artworks? How can one describe the special appeal of his work? It is subtlety, intelligence, which is the basis for a quiet, very personal and deeply engaged conversation with the world, with faces, with things. It is reaching into the light, the reflection of colors, in which the artist shows minimal generosity with colors and lines, on the contrary, he only captures the essential, the necessary. At first glance, his minimalist drawings can seem like mere sketches and outlines. But do take a closer look! You cannot tell if apiece of music is good just from the first sounds. You have to listen until the end. So take a look at the artworks for longer, and you will discover all the subtle matter and an entire world of Māris Uldriķis.
P. S. There are no annotations to the artworks. They usially show the author, time of creation, dimensions, and technique. Māris Uldriķis is the author of all these artworks, he has not given titles to his works, therefore the viewers have the privilege of inventing names themselves. The time of creation is his entire life, in which all time was time for art, and the dimensions do not reflect the grandeur of his artworks.
Curator and author of the annotation: Astrīda Rogule
The exhibition was created in cooperation with Irina Tīre – Liepāja artist, photographer, and dear friend of Māris Uldriķis. The exhibition was designed by artist Ivars Pilips.
Location:
Civita Nova 1
Organized by:
Great Amber
Supported by:
Liepāja City Council and State Culture Capital Foundation
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