Grand Poet Art Collection Presents Exhibition by Ella Mežule

Continuing the collaboration between the Latvian Academy of Art (LMA) and Semarah Hotels to support young and talented Latvian artists, the third solo exhibition was opened on Friday, March 1st, at the Grand Poet Hotel. This time, visitors to the hotel have the opportunity to see the works of Ella Mežule, a master's student at LMA. The exhibition will be open for viewing and evaluation by anyone interested until June of this year.

The exhibition is titled "I observe quick, solitary crowds; they tell me about their plentiful cosmonauts," and its opening was attended by Ella Mežule's professor, painter, and Vice-Rector of LMA, Professor Andris Vītoliņš, the manager of the Grand Poet Hotel, Māris Alnis, as well as the artist's family and close friends. Music for the event was provided by musician Jānis Ruņģis.

"There are not many institutions in Latvia where young artists have the opportunity to showcase their works to a wider audience. Even fewer institutions are able to support young artists financially. It is fantastic that an institution not directly associated with the academy, a large, powerful, and official one, is interested in what is happening in the art world and introduces its visitors, including foreigners, to a small part of the Latvian art scene. I am delighted that I could remove the dust from my works by exhibiting them and allowing other art lovers to view and evaluate them," says E. Mežule.

The artist explains that the series of works exhibited, which began in 2017, is created in the long term through observations, thoughts, emotions, reflections, surprises, discoveries, and comforts about our human nature and its indeterminate flow.

"The paintings express the artist's interest in the other side, in what is happening somewhere beyond the frame. An interest in a world that moves, breathes, and has emotions. A world that has blood flowing in its veins and whose legs have not yet atrophied from sitting at a computer. Ella's works are intelligent; they may offer hope for civilization to survive in this sadomasochistic world of conceptualism, where it turns out that nature still exists somewhere and someone can even capture it," says A. Vītoliņš about his student's talent.

Ella Mežule previously studied at the Jānis Rozentāls Riga Art High School and LMA, and further expanded her knowledge in Ireland and Italy. Her works have been exhibited not only in Latvia but also in Lithuania, Estonia, Ireland, Belgium, Italy, and other countries. In 2016, she received the Brederlo-von Sengbusch Art Prize, and in 2017, the Valdemārs Tone Scholarship. She is currently continuing her studies in painting at the master's level at LMA. In addition to her studies, she is the head of the LMA Saturday School and an art teacher at the Ķekava Art School. This is her fifth solo exhibition.

Anyone interested can evaluate the paintings by attaching a specially designed sticker worth five euros to the nearest work. Māris Alnis, the manager of the Grand Poet Hotel, explains that at the end of each quarter, the hotel acquires the most highly evaluated painting from the exhibition, thus creating a unique collection of works by young Latvian artists, the "Grand Poet Art Collection." The collection already includes works by two young artists, Madara Kvēpa and Justīne Seile, for which special places have been selected in the hotel's premises by designers, delighting visitors, art enthusiasts, and wanderers from all over the world. The opening of the next exhibition is planned for this summer.

About the Grand Poet Art Collection
On June 14, 2018, the Latvian Academy of Art and the Semarah Hotels network signed a memorandum of collaboration to support and develop young artists in Latvia. Its goal is to support LMA students and young Latvian artists, encourage new achievements, raise self-awareness, build an international career, provide financial support for talent development, and create space for organizing solo exhibitions, thereby promoting the development of art in Latvia.

About the Grand Poet Hotel
The Grand Poet Hotel is part of the Semarah Hotels network created in Latvia. The hotel network currently boasts a resort hotel, "Lielupe," in Jūrmala, and two hotels in Riga - the four-star historic hotel "Metropole" on Aspazijas Boulevard and the elegant five-star design hotel "Grand Poet Hotel" on Raiņa Boulevard 5/6. Each of them has its own unique story and values.

"Grand Poet Hotel" has created the "Diplohēmijas" concept, which combines design solutions characteristic of diplomacy and bohemia, created by the internationally recognized and award-winning concept and design agency "Stylt Trampoli" (Sweden). The project was developed by the architectural office "Sarma un Norde" (Latvia), preserving the architectural uniqueness of the building. The name of the hotel embodies duality, which is often embodied in poetry - practicality and bohemianism.