Brekte ©

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  1. Kristians Brekte (1981) became known on the Latvian contemporary art scene more than a decade ago, when he was branded a hooligan. “(…) boldly and as if with a scalpel, Brekte always ‘cuts’ the exhibition visitor a little. So that it smarts slightly, and you don’t understand whether it’s a good or a bad thing, and even get a little angry,” wrote Anna Iltnere, editor of the web portal Arterritory.com.

    Brekte is one of the most expressive Latvian new generation artists, who has earned his publicity by working in various fields. He chooses to speak about everlasting themes like life and death, religion and sexuality. The range of his artistic outlets is seemingly endless - from monumental ironic figurative compositions charged with energy and free painting style, emphasized brutal brush strokes and local color to accurately crafted ready-made sculptures which creates completely new contexts of used materials.

    He has been taking part in group exhibitions across the Europe, United States and Russia since 2001 and has already made eight solo shows. One of them “The Madonnas of Riga” (2010) was nominated for the most prestigious art award in Latvia - “Purvītis Prize”. Brekte has been featured in a book “Younger that Jesus” published by Phaidon in 2010. After representing Alma Gallery in Third International Contemporary Art Fair “Art Vilnius’12” he received “Young Foreign Artist (under 35)” title. Brekte has also gained MA degree in stage design and has proven himself as a professional scenographer by working in every most noticable theatre in Latvia including Dailes Theatre, New Riga Theatre, Liepajas Theatre.

     

    Education:

    2006–2009 Master of Arts, Department of Stage Design, Art Academy of Latvia

    2002–2006 Bachelor of Arts, Department of Stage Design, Art Academy of Latvia

    1997–2002 Riga Design and Art School (former Riga College of Applied Art)

    1987–1997 Riga 2nd Secondary School 

  2. Professional working experience:

    2014–present Head of the Department of Environmental Art, Art Academy of Latvia

    2013–present Assistant Professor in the Department of Stage Design, Art Academy of Latvia 

    2011–present Lecturer in the Department of Environmental Art, Art Academy of Latvia

    2011–2013 Lecturer in the Department of Stage Design, Art Academy of Latvia

    2009–2011 Guest Lecturer in the Department of Stage Design, Art Academy of Latvia

    2012–2014 Independent expert at State Culture Capital Foundation, Council of Visual Arts

  3. Major stage designs for plays:

    2015 – Children of the Sun Dailes Theatre, the great hall, directed by Dž. Dž. Džilindžers

    2014 – Two Captains Dailes Theatre, small hall, directed by Genādijs Ostrovskis

    2013 – The Night Is Not Over Yet Dailes Theatre, small hall, directed by Intars Rešetins

    2013 – Shaping  Dailes Theatre, the great hall, directed by Dž. Dž. Džilindžers

    2013 – Borgia Liepāja Theatre, directed by Dž. Dž. Džilindžers

    2013 – A Behanding In Spokane Dailes Theatre, chamber hall, directed by Jurijs Djakonovs

    2012 – Angels in America Dailes Theatre, small hall, directed by Mārtiņš Eihe

    2012 – Let the Fire Dailes Theatre, the great hall, directed by Dž. Dž. Džilindžers

    2010 – Farewell in June Dailes Theatre, small hall, directed by Mārtiņš Eihe

    2009 – Half-stop New Riga Theatre, directed by Ilze Olingere

    2008 – Necrophiliac Dailes Theatre, chamber hall, directed by Dž. Dž. Džilindžers

    2008 – Noble Gases New Riga Theatre / Festival Golden Mask in Moscow, directed by Ilze Olingere

    2006 – Holy Blood  Black box Teater Oslo / Latvian National Theatre, directed by Gaļina Poļiščuka

     

    Solo exhibitions:

    2014 – Dead Ain't Gone Alma Gallery

    2013 – Animal Painting Mūkusala Art Salon, small hall

    2013 – Obsessive Neurosis and Castrational Threat Alma Gallery

    2012 – Pure Evil Alma Gallery

    2011 – Trophies Riga Art Space, intro hall (nominated for The Annual Diena Newspaper Award for Culture)

    2010 – Riga Madonnas Alma Gallery (nominated for Purvītis Prize)

    2009 – My Animals / Allergy  Alma Gallery

    2008 – Morgue Gallery 1st Floor

    2007 – Gastronomy Latvian Artists Union Gallery (nominated for The Annual Diena Newspaper Award for Culture)

     

    Major group exhibitions:

    2014 – Vienna Fair Messeplatz, Vienna, Austria

    2014 – On the Wave. Contemporary Art of Siberia and Latvia Riga Art Space, Riga

    2014 – Culture Canon Art Academy of Latvia, Riga

    2013 – Last Exhibition Literature and Music museum, Riga 

    2013 – Nudity Mūkusala Art Salon, Riga

    2013 – The Museum Chooses. Acquisitions of the Latvian National Museum of Art   

               in 2012 Museum of Decorative Arts and Design, Riga

    2012 – Verge Art Miami International Art fair, Miami

    2012 – Global Projects:Artists at Home and Abroad Broadway gallery, New York

    2012 – Contemporary Art Fair Art Vilnius exhibition hall Litexpo, Vilnius (Young Foreign Artist (under 35) title)

    2012 – The Naughty Ones / Artists As Challengers of Society Arsenāls Exhibition hall of the LNMA, Riga

    2012 – To be or not Gallery Brīvības 75, Dailes Theatre, Riga

    2011 – Thickspace. Dr. Guntis Belēvičs Collection Arsenāls Exhibition hall of the LNMA, Riga

    2011 – Waves.. the Tides of Time Gallery Onetwentyeight, New York

    2011 –  Shakespeare + Chekhov + Beckett + Blaumanis 12th Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space, Prague 

    2011 –  The Playful Eight Gallery Onetwentyeight, New York

    2010 – Urban Children Arsenāls Exhibition hall of the LNMA, Riga

    2010 – Mutants Mūkusala Art Salon, Rīga

    2010 – Golden works Arsenāls Exhibition hall of the LNMA, Riga

    2009 – NEXT the Invitational Exhibition of Emerging Art, Chicago

    2009 –  Contemporary Icons Alma Gallery, Rīga

    2008 – The 9th Baltic States Biennale of Graphic Art Kaliningrad

    2008 – BERLINER LISTE Fair for Contemporary Art, Berlin

    2007 – Candy Bomber Arsenāls Exhibition hall of the LNMA, Riga

    2007 –  The Master and Margarita 11th Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space, Prague 

    2006 – Urban dice 10th International Architecture exhibition – Venice Biennale of Architecture, Venice

    2006 – Emergency Biennale in Chechnya: stopover Riga, Upcoming Riga City Exhibition hall, Riga

    2005 – By the way Riga – Mainz Catacombs of Mainz, Mainz

    2005 – Poles Together / Poles Apart project by curators from New York and Israel, 51st International Art exhibition – Venice Biennale, Venice

    2003 – Contemporary Lear 10th Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space, Prague 

  4. Works in collections:

    The Collection of the Latvian National Museum of Art, Latvia

    Jānis Zuzāns’ Collection, Latvia

    Dr.biol. Guntis Belēvičs’ Collection, Latvia

    Irina and Māris Vītols’ Collection, Latvia

    Jānis Loze’ Collection, Latvia

    McKee Gallery Collection, United States

    Other private collections in Latvia, Lithuania, Germany, France and United States