- Location
- Helsinki, Finland
I'm sensitive to music, especially classical music, choir and opera. However this time an Estonian painter opened my heart and raised moist to my eyes in an exhibition at EMMA museum in Espoo.
Estonia is our Southern neighbor and our fates with them has been twisted in many occasions during the centuries. Estonia and Baltics were stronger and closer to Europe than people in the present area of Finland and e.g. during Hansa trade union years in medieval times 1200-1400 there were 4 Hansa cities in Estonia. Beginning of 1900 until the collapse of Soviet Union was sad time for Estonian people. In Finland we suffered of the Northern war theater in WWII, Soviet Union attacked to Finland in winter war and later Finland took a revanche against Soviet Union, unfortunately with the help of Germany. But we were never occupied by Russians since independence December 6th, 1917. Estonia was occupied twice by both German and Soviet troops since their independence February 24, 1918 and got independence back just 1991 when Soviet Union collapsed.
Konrad Mägi was very respected painter at his time in Estonia and had connections to Central Europe: France, Germany, Italy. But the Finnish friends helped him in his early career and lent the money to survive in Paris in his early years. The letters between Mägi and his Finnish friends were given to Estonian National Museum just lately few years back.
I was touched to my very heart by the themes, colours and feelings of Mägi's paintings. He lived short life, burned in hot flames in his short career, painting roughly 400 works during 15 active years. His painting style and living resembled almost shamanism and he always painted what he saw in his heart. Landscapes are colorful and beautiful but those are always his internal landscapes only reflecting vaguely the real life. Portraits were necessary for living but the subject and buyers sometimes didn't fully agree his vision.
I took some photos to refresh my memory afterwards. Those aren't meant to copy but just to share a bit of the feeling. Just wanted to share with you the story.
Estonia is our Southern neighbor and our fates with them has been twisted in many occasions during the centuries. Estonia and Baltics were stronger and closer to Europe than people in the present area of Finland and e.g. during Hansa trade union years in medieval times 1200-1400 there were 4 Hansa cities in Estonia. Beginning of 1900 until the collapse of Soviet Union was sad time for Estonian people. In Finland we suffered of the Northern war theater in WWII, Soviet Union attacked to Finland in winter war and later Finland took a revanche against Soviet Union, unfortunately with the help of Germany. But we were never occupied by Russians since independence December 6th, 1917. Estonia was occupied twice by both German and Soviet troops since their independence February 24, 1918 and got independence back just 1991 when Soviet Union collapsed.
Konrad Mägi was very respected painter at his time in Estonia and had connections to Central Europe: France, Germany, Italy. But the Finnish friends helped him in his early career and lent the money to survive in Paris in his early years. The letters between Mägi and his Finnish friends were given to Estonian National Museum just lately few years back.
I was touched to my very heart by the themes, colours and feelings of Mägi's paintings. He lived short life, burned in hot flames in his short career, painting roughly 400 works during 15 active years. His painting style and living resembled almost shamanism and he always painted what he saw in his heart. Landscapes are colorful and beautiful but those are always his internal landscapes only reflecting vaguely the real life. Portraits were necessary for living but the subject and buyers sometimes didn't fully agree his vision.
I took some photos to refresh my memory afterwards. Those aren't meant to copy but just to share a bit of the feeling. Just wanted to share with you the story.
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