Eesti kunsti oksjonid

Oil on canvas. 1955.
Signature: E. Kõks 55

Endel Kõks (1912-1983), a member of the golden trio of artists with Kits and Mikko, was one of the first to come into contact with modern Western art movements after emigrating to Sweden and to practice them with passion in his own work. However, his treatment of figures retained the love for slender, straight-backed lines that had begun during his studies in Tartu, which was a kind of reflection of his own gentlemanly posture.

In 1936, Kõks completed the tempera painting “Composition with a Woman” (EKM), most likely as a preliminary work for the present piece in which a young lady with a mask in geometric shapes has turned her gaze to an abstract object on the left. By 1955, the artist added a partner to the woman, a man holding her tenderly.

The finished painting follows the decorative and stylizing approach that became internationally popular in that decade, which spread both in visual arts and as an artistic element in the exterior and interior of buildings. The linearly articulated surfaces add dynamism to the composition while the entire color scheme is charmingly subordinated to various shades of warm brown.

The bright mood prevailing in the work is emphasized by the image of a large heart painted on the male figure, which also directly expresses the meaning – a declaration of love. The white lines behind the couple’s backs symbolize a protective sense of home, which for Kõks primarily meant Estonia.

Text: Harry Liivrand, Katre Palm