Eesti kunsti oksjonid

Ink on paper. 1960s.
Signature: EW.

Edgar Valter (1929-2006) was a man of many trades. He held many jobs in his youth, including working as a sailor, a contractor, a printer and a locksmith. However, he managed to start a freelance artist’s life at the age of 21 and support himself through his creative path.

His first caricature was published in Õhtuleht in 1944 but Valter became best known for his comical and parody pictures, which appeared in the humor magazine Pikker. The artist’s friend and big fan Vahur Kersna has said: “Edgar Valter stretched caricature to the other side of its possibilities. Each picture tells a story exactly as long, wise and experienced as you let it be.”

“In the ballroom” is truly intriguing and full of endless stories. We meet a group of mobsters who are keeping a close eye on the central figure with glasses, a man who obediently followed his wife into the dance hall, and dozens of other exciting couples. The characters’ unusually expressive facial expressions were Valter’s bread and butter – this is a work of art that guarantees a good mood.

Text: Kaspar Allik