Ceiling Painting

Among other things, modernity is characterised by horizontality, non-hierarchical structures, and the blending of public and private space. The interplay of different time periods in this exhibition, the tension between the formal, representative elements and the sketch-like gestures on display, as well as its cross-media approach, are all symptoms of this same modernity. A traditional exhibition, by its nature, is a format that denies the fluid perception of time and space. It always strives for a state of permanence, as if stretching a momentary snapshot of an artist’s work into a months-long display. Yet moments pass, and artistic creation is never static.

In Uru Valter’s work, process, craftsmanship, and performativity play a central role. Throughout the exhibition, artists will be working on a large ceiling painting in the final hall. With its circular form, this gradually emerging piece recalls both the ceiling painting of the Estonia Opera House, created after World War II, and Tõnis Saadoja’s ceiling painting in the foyer of the former NO99 Theatre on Sakala Street. Notably, one of the three artists behind the Estonia Opera House ceiling painting (once again, the number three!) – Evald Okas – also has a seascape displayed in this exhibition’s seal grey hall.

The placement of the artwork on the ceiling, along with the scaffolding erected in the space, influences the viewer’s choreography – forcing us to tilt our heads back while also carefully watching our step. If there is no particular rush and one happens to visit the City Gallery at the same time as Uru Valter, they can settle comfortably on the studio sofa, put on headphones, listen to the work music, and observe the artists at work.

See also: bottom-up; top-down; labour poetry; flow state; responsibility partnership; performance; you are standing inside this artwork; scaffolding is the ruin of the future; every ending is followed by a new beginning; this exhibition will be followed by another exhibition, and then another, and then another, and then …