Figures

Silva Eher was a painter whose journey in the Estonian art scene during the 1970s and 1980s followed a conventional path: she worked as an artist in the animation group at Eesti Telefilm, graduated from the Estonian State Art Institute (ERKI), and actively participated in overview exhibitions at the Art Hall during the 1980s, as well as the beloved spring exhibitions.

However, after the industrious 1980s, Eher’s pace began to slow. While she remained an active artist, the transformative 1990s – marked by the rise of new media, video art, and installations that came to define contemporary art in its quintessential modern form – did not see her venturing into these emerging mediums or techniques. Was her work perhaps a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time? In today’s context, her creations might resonate in dialogue with artists such as Alice Kask, Daria Morozova, Brenda Purtsak, or Marleen Suvi.