Latvian Exile Artist Valdis Āboliņš Explored in Comprehensive 2019 Publication
In 2019, Ieva Astahovska and Antra Priede-Krievkalne edited a bilingual book that delves into the life of Latvian exile artist Valdis Āboliņš (1939–1984). This 662-page publication, released by the Latvian Centre for Contemporary Art, features essays, personal anecdotes, letters, and reproductions of mail art. As a child, Āboliņš escaped to Germany, where he pursued architecture at RWTH Aachen University and engaged with the Fluxus movement, Galerie Aachen (1965–1967), and the Aachen Festival of New Art (1964). The volume is organized into three parts, focusing on his avant-garde creations, leftist endeavors while in exile, and his subsequent work in West Berlin. Contributors include Adam C. Oeller, Petra Stegmann, among others, emphasizing Āboliņš's Marxist ideology and cultural contributions, though some viewpoints are absent.
Key facts
- Valdis Āboliņš (1939–1984) was a Latvian exile mail artist, curator, and cultural promoter
- The book 'Valdis Āboliņš. The Avant-garde, Mailart, the New Left, and Cultural Relations during the Cold War' was published in 2019 by the Latvian Centre for Contemporary Art in Riga
- Editors are Ieva Astahovska and Antra Priede-Krievkalne
- The 662-page volume is bilingual (Latvian and English) except for Āboliņš's correspondence, which is in Latvian only
- Materials come from archives including correspondence with Jānis Borgs and archives from Kārlis Āboliņš
- Āboliņš was involved with Fluxus, founded Galerie Aachen, and organized the Aachen Festival of New Art in 1964
- He had Marxist views and attempted to foster cultural contacts between Soviet Latvia and the West during the Cold War
- The book is structured into three sections: A (1960s avant-garde), B (leftist activities in exile), and O (work in West Berlin and contacts with Latvia)
Entities
Artists
- Valdis Āboliņš
- Ieva Astahovska
- Antra Priede-Krievkalne
- Maija Tabaka
- Jānis Borgs
- Kārlis Āboliņš
- Wolf Vostell
- Joseph Beuys
- Adam C. Oeller
- Petra Stegmann
- Maruta Schmidt
- Ģirts Zēgners
- Ojārs J. Rozītis
- Barbara Straka
- Jānis Taurens
- Mark Allen Svede
- Charlotte Moorman
- Nam June Paik
- Niklāvs Strunke
- Ilze Gulēna
- Stella Pelše
- Dace Lamberga
- Nikolajs Bulmanis
- Aija Nodieva
Institutions
- Latvian Centre for Contemporary Art
- RWTH Aachen University
- Galerie Aachen
- neue Gesellschaft für bildende Kunst
- Ohio State University
- Riga Secondary School of Applied Arts
- Institute of Art History of the Latvian Academy of Art
- ARTMargins Online
- Mākslas Vēsture un Teorija / Art History and Theory
- LNMM & Neputns
Locations
- Riga
- Latvia
- Germany
- West Berlin
- Aachen
- Düsseldorf
- Cologne
- Siberia
- Russia
- Ohio
- United States
Sources
- ARTMargins —
- ARTMargins —