Memories from Altai Krai
Curator: Anneliis Lepp
Memories from Altai Krai is the story of the artist’s ancestors who migrated to Siberia at the end of the 19th century due to land shortage. The dream of a better life led them on a long and exhausting journey to Barnaul County, Altai Krai in Central Asia. After several stops they finally settled in the middle of the open steppe sided by mountains, founding a village named Eesti (Estonia) there together with other families.
Consisting of drawings, paintings and ceramic objects, the exhibition is based on the diary of Liisa Kruusmägi’s grandmother, which contains fragments of memories from the time spent in Estonia village. She has described the time spent there as “life that was full of hard work, but also fun“. It was a time of both joy and human loss.
Sound design: Taavi Tulev
Liisa Kruusmägi (1988) is an Estonian painter and illustrator. She studied painting as a bachelor at the Estonian Academy of Arts and finished a master’s degree in drawing there in 2013. Kruusmägi has improved herself at the Rhode Island Schools of Design. Her recent solo exhibitions include Cephalopods with Binoculars at Vaal Gallery (2022), Balearic Liisa at Stella Soomlais Studio (2022) and Colours of Corals with Maarja Mäemets at HOP Gallery (2021). Her works can also be seen in the street scene: she has painted large murals on the north side of Paide Pritsumaja and above the entrance of Tops Bar in Tallinn.
Anneliis Lepp (1988) studied art history and visual culture at the Estonian Academy of Arts. She is specialised in children’s book illustration and the relationship between the meaning of the picture and the word. Lepp has collaborated with Estonian Children’s Literature Centre and has written numerous articles on children’s book illustration.