Raili Keiv to bring classics of local ceramic art to the table again at the exhibition Room

20.1.2023

Exhibition

Raili Keiv’s exhibition Room is open in the gallery of the Estonian Museum of Applied Art and Design from 21 January. The artist has explored the museum’s collections and selected design classics by Estonian ceramic artists, mainly from the 1960s–1980s, combining these with her own creations into a new and timeless combination. 

“When I started working on the exhibition a year ago, I had several ideas for how to approach this material. The concept of the Room exhibition series does not directly imply that I should make new works myself. Rather, it is important to relate to the museum’s collections. When I got to know the material, I realised that since I have such a direct relationship with industrial ceramics, this would be a very natural path to take,” Raili Keiv says. “For the Room exhibition, I ended up chosing works by Leo Rohlin, Anu Rank-Soans, Laine Sisa, Velda Soidla, Henriette Tugi-Nuusberg, Annika Teder, Anne Keek, Haidi Ratas, Ingrid Allik and Tiina Lõhmus, who worked as designers in ceramic companies from the 1960s to the 1980s. I have restored some dishes that have become design classics, using the preserved moulds.”

Raili Keiv has created an eclectic whole from works by all the mentioned artists, which speaks of the potential of design as a combination of different artists’ styles and production possibilities, and is also a tribute to Estonian design heritage. The objects activated in this way form a new ceramic collage that can be treated as a notional dishware set, which has become the impetus for Raili Keiv’s own new work. The gallery space has been constructed as an installation environment dense in objects that reference industry. Historical and modern material is supported by old and new plaster moulds.

“At first, I wasn’t sure if I would present any new items in the exhibition, but soon I came up with the idea of a tray. This allowed me to provide a neutral stage, so to speak, for objects from the 1970s and 1980s. After all, as I was attracted by the idea of combining the items into a single dishware set, I had already selected a number of bowls that I liked. Exciting plates were harder to find. The tray-plate was an excellent support form for the dialogue,” Keiv says. 

In order to connect the historical material with her own work, the artist combines the silhouettes of the historical forms into patterns and applies them to the forms she has developed. Repetition in both form and pattern meet on her ceramic trays specially designed for the exhibition to serve as a background.

Raili Keiv offers exhibition visitors an opportunity to think with her, rediscover material from the history of Estonian design, and reflect on its meaning and longevity. At the same time, the exhibition pays homage to the work of industrial artists who also like to make unique items. Keiv does this from the position of a present-day artist working in her own studio, for whom former industrial opportunities are mostly an unattainable dream.  

Raili Keiv studied ceramics at the Estonian Academy of Arts and graduated from the department of product design in 2013. In 2007–2008 she studied at the Hochschule Burg Giebichenstein in Germany, and in 2012 at the Royal Danish Academy of Arts. In 2008 and 2012 she was an intern at the Kahla porcelain factory, where she was also able to realise her own work. From 2013 to 2017, she lived and worked in Berlin. Since 2017, she has been working in her studio at the ARS Art Factory and also teaches at the Estonian Academy of Arts.

She has participated in numerous solo and group exhibitions both in Estonia and abroad, and her creations are also displayed in the Estonian Museum of Applied Art and Design’s permanent exhibition Introduction to Estonian Design. As a designer, she works mainly with porcelain and clay, exploring their boundaries and combining them with other materials.

The Room exhibition series invites contemporary artists and designers to explore items in the museum’s collections – material artefacts that have shaped our everyday environment in one way or another. The project results in an installation environment inspired by the collections, supplemented by the material and keywords chosen by the artist.

Artists involved: Leo Rohlin, Anu Rank-Soans, Laine Sisa, Velda Soidla, Henriette Tugi-Nuusberg, Annika Teder, Anne Keek, Haidi Ratas, Ingrid Allik, Tiina Lõhmus

Exhibition design and graphic design: Aadam Kaarma

Video: Virko Veskoja 

Exhibition team: Ha Eun Kim, Beata Batejeva (interns with Raili Keiv); mould-making master Anatol Movileanu; Estonian Museum of Applied Art and Design: Kai Lobjakas, Ketli Tiitsar, Toomas Übner, Silvia Pärmann

The artist thanks: Anatol Movileanu, Anton Koovit, Arno Elias Koovit, Ha Eun Kim, Beata Batejeva, Lauri Kilusk, Liisi Eelmaa, artists involved in the exhibition, parents and friends, ARS Art Factory.

The exhibition is supported by the Cultural Endowment of Estonia.

The exhibition will remain open until 2 April 2023.