On June 4, Ieva Rižė’s exhibition opens at apiece, a showcase-style gallery strategically focusing on autonomic artistic expression. The environment, energy and matter that surround the artist of the younger generation become in her creative practice somewhat dialectical, a fusion of an action and a counter-reaction that unfolds through time. Sometimes this time is marked by objects, artifacts of nature, or else paintings, drawings and costumes. As Ieva put it, “my work is accompanied by an entanglement among ideas, details and randomly found artifacts that are given meaning, a constant polishing of speculations and creative work through emerging materials that become a means to articulate (…)”.
“Prototype of Mental Prosthesis” creates a tension between the living and the inanimate, between the observer and the work. In general, the aspect of between – in the context of inanimate materials, life forms, people, objects that are not used (anymore), bodies and definitions themselves – becomes the axis of the installation, and the fact that it is inserted between the display windows of apiece gallery creates additional tension.
The work consists of two independently moving balls: these are kinetic objects, freely levitating in space and reacting to natural parameters such as temperature, air currents, etc. The artist likens them to a simplified consciousness and a way of exploring the performativity of objects by irritating the viewer’s imaginative impulses.
apiece: Ieva, could you comment on the title of the work?
Ieva Rižė: The title comes from my interest in the various prostheses and other accessories that improve or compensate for human functions. They improve, supplement and extend physiological capabilities. As I have recently been researching the topic of mental health, I am interested in “Madness studies”. So I was curious to fantasise about what a mental prosthesis could be and look like. In an abstract sense, I reckon all impactful artworks are a kind of mental prosthesis enabling us to empathise with realities that can be very different from ours. Then it was up to me to find my own form by objectifying the idea of a mental prosthesis. This time, the work “came about” later than its title.
apiece: Does the choice of the gallery and the fact that it is in a public space and accessible to a wide range of audiences broaden the meanings of the work?
Ieva Rižė: In my view, apiece gallery becomes a kind of incubator for this prototype of a “mental prosthesis”. Of course, people don’t have the possibility to experience being together with the objects, but I think that in this case this fact will stimulate the imagination even more.
Ieva Rižė currently lives and works in Vilnius. Since 2018, she has been studying at the Vilnius Academy of Arts’ Department of Sculpture (Master’s studies). She is currently researching the importance of visuality in the context of contemporary art. Since 2015, Butoh movement art along with the experiences and insights she gains through this practice have become an integral part of her work.
Exhibition curators: Milena Černiakaitė and Aušra Trakšelytė
Graphic Design: Marek Voida
Communication: Menų komunikacija
Exhibition is financed by the Vilnius City Council
Sponsor: Deimantas Stanevičius
Exhibition open until June 23 2023
Exhibition can be viewed 24/7