Eesti kunsti oksjonid

Lithography, linocut on paper. 1975.
Signature “Hüpe” (lito + linool) 8/35 / Sünnipäevaks Helvi Tornile! 1976.a. J. Arrak / J. Arrak 75.

The 1970s have been called the golden age of Estonian graphic art and for good reason – it was then that there were many very talented artists on the scene, their precepts were freer compared to painting, and opportunities arose to obtain higher-quality materials from the West.

Arrak combines linocut and lithography, thereby giving the black and white print an additional shade of blue – despite the relaxed rules, such a combination of colors would not have passed muster in painting! With the artist’s characteristic irony, he talks about two little men sewing a rag doll at a table, a man with jagged heads, who completely fails to notice the leap taking place behind the window.

Who is the man holding the raccoon-like object in his hand, where did he come from and where is he going? Arrak, who loved riddles, leaves the viewer with an exciting puzzle to solve here. The print is also part of the collection of the Art Museum of Estonia and is cited as an example of his work in the article “Jüri Arrak: Interpreting Visual Archetypes in Estonia” written for MoMa by art historian Elnara Taidre (https://post.moma.org/juri-arrak-interpreting-visual-archetypes-in-estonia/).

Text: Katre Palm