Photo: Exhibition exploring memory through fragile art objects opens at Hobusepea gallery
A joint exhibition "Läbi" (Through) by Maarja Mäemets and Evelina Lindström has opened at the Hobusepea gallery in Tallinn, exploring memory through fragile ceramic and glass artworks. Lindström's works reflect Henri Bergson's concept of duration, while Mäemets uses spatial structures and the ancient memory palace method.
An exhibition titled "Läbi" (Through) has opened at the Hobusepea gallery in Tallinn, featuring works by Estonian artists Maarja Mäemets and Evelina Lindström. The display combines two distinct approaches to memory, expressed through delicate ceramic and glass creations.
Evelina Lindström draws inspiration from French philosopher Henri Bergson's theory of duration. According to Bergson, time is not linear and uniform but flows with varying rhythms and intensities. Memory, in his view, is not a static archive but an ever-changing, active process. Lindström translates this idea into repetitive pearl-like forms. Her pieces illustrate how an irritant or a foreign body, such as a grain of sand, can over time transform into something whole and solid.
Maarja Mäemets, on the other hand, conceptualizes memory as a spatial structure. Her installations feature stairs leading nowhere, empty vessels, and objects placed above eye level and out of reach. This arrangement suggests that memory is a fragmented system, only partially accessible to humans. Mäemets employs the ancient Greek memory palace technique (method of loci), traditionally used to organize knowledge and memorize complex information. However, she applies it to explore emotions, personal experiences, and recollections.
The exhibition will be open at Hobusepea gallery until July 19.
