Eesti kunsti oksjonid

Oil on canvas. 1978.
Signature: E78

The work of surrealist Ervin Õunapuu (b. 1956) also contains an undefined mystery, intrigue, questions, and a certain absence in what initially seems to be realism. In this 1978 painting, we find the oval shape that would become a central motif in his later work, which appears here as a white egg symbolizing the beginning of life and later as an olive, symbolizing vitality.

“Still-life with fruit” already contains a contradiction in its title because before us is not a classical still-life consisting of inanimate objects but a composition floating in an undefined space, which, on the contrary, is boiling with life. Starting from an egg carrying life in itself and a pepper spinning in the air to seashells resembling magical clouds. Fresh onions tied in a bundle with a metal chain are bubbling with vitality as are the juicy radishes, carrots and precisely defined fantasy fruits, enthroned by an element with a cracked surface that has become one of Õunapuu’s clear signature shots – a bubbling heart.

The detailed, slightly modernist style of painting, the organization of the images and the overall mood of the piece are reminiscent of Bosch’s visionary works, the brown background of the academic school of painting. In this painting, Õunapuu plays with art history but his flight of imagination is free from any limitations.

Text: Katre Palm, Harry Liivrand