15.10. - 16.11.2020

Galerija "Māksla XO"

Elizabetes iela 14, Rīga, LV 1010

GLEBS PANTELEJEVS

Hormonia

“While perceiving ourselves through the prism of consciousness, spirituality and morality, we often forget that Homo sapiens is a predatory, aggressive, selfish and lustful herd animal. Its behavior is determined by the level of biochemical processes and depends on the action of hormones - bioactive substances. Hormones bring us closer to the animal kingdom and dispel the myth of the special origins of man, because hormones are the same and universal for all living beings.
In this exhibition I’m trying to find causal relationships between physiological and hormonal processes in the body of Homo sapiens, as well as the essence of humanity. I didn't answer the big questions, but I found the influence of the hormonal background on the history of civilization through images of historical figures - Lenin, Richard Wagner, Modest Mussorgsky. "Lenin in the Sea of Sperm" is a metaphor for insemination of the stagnant civilization, its restart and fertilization. All sculptures contain a metaphor, but the spectrum of creative methods ranges from naturalistic realism to constructive, geometric stylization. For me the question of HOW to do the work and achieve the result is the most important thing in sculpture, otherwise I would choose other means of expression.
I do not deny that this exhibition is a look through the prism of gender. I’m a white European, a man, heterosexual, I eat meat and use car for my daily travels, I am not a model of universal tolerance for otherness and I do not believe that conspiracy theories are always empty and unfounded. I believe that there are worlds of women and men, exclusive, mental territories, mutually inaccessible and incomprehensible to each other.
Some of the works were created in the spring of 2020, during the Covid-19 crisis, which, frankly, left a significant emotional imprint on them” - Glebs Pantelejevs, 2020.

Glebs Pantelejevs is one of the most exquisite and versatile Latvian sculptors, working in all traditional fields of sculpture - he creates statues, environmental objects and monumental works. Sculptures by Glebs Pantelejevs have a clear, plastic form, that’s based on realism and vary from laconic minimalism to abundantly baroqual. It can be photorealistic, abstract, static or kinetic. The artistic form is further enriched by the choice of various sculptural materials, that Glebs Pantelejevs often brings together creating witty and contrasting combinations. His works are made of bronze, aluminum, steel, granite, marble, wood, glass and synthetic materials. The content of these artworks is just as diverse, including philosophy, science, wit, social criticism, cultural history and politics. (Ilze Zeivate)

Glebs Pantelejevs (1965) has graduated from the Department of Sculpture at the Art Academy of Latvia (1991). Since 1991 he has held 16 solo shows and participated in more than 40 group exhibitions in Latvia, Estonia, Belarus, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Czech Republic, United Kingdom, France, Cyprus, Canada, Mexico and Japan. He has recieved many prizes and awards, as well as created numerous significant monuments and environmental objects dedicated to the history and culture of Latvia in various Latvian cities. Sculptures by Glebs Pantelejevs are in public collections – Latvian National Museum of Art, Jurmala City Museum, Latvian War Museum, National Bank of Latvia, Latvian National Opera and Ballet, Latvijas Gaisa Satiksme (Riga, Latvia); Deutsche Aerospace (Munich, Germany) and Skulpturenpark Katzow (Katzow, Germany).

More:   https://ltv.lsm.lv/lv/raksts/14.10.2020-gleba-pantelejeva-hormonija.id199417/