On Thursday, 29 January at 6 PM, we will open the joint exhibition Greetings from Kanepi! Wish u were here by artists Birgit Kaleva, Keiu Maasik and Mark Raidpere at the FOKU gallery. You are warmly invited!

 

A father’s diary from the 60s, postcards from Kanepi, Colin McRae Rally 2.0. Abstracted movements, run down household appliances, a ghost car. Driftwood Songs, a spider plant, a life stored in virtuality.

 

The works of Birgit Kaleva, Keiu Maasik and Mark Raidpere open up insights into the stories of family lines, or rather into fragments or excerpts of these stories. The (auto)biographical is intertwined with fiction, perhaps we cannot know for certain what is based on real life and what is imaginary — and maybe it doesn’t matter either.

 

In Birgit Kaleva’s photo series Weizenbergi 51 (2026), we see views of the artist’s birthplace in Kanepi – a parish in South Estonia – where she still lives with her parents. To work through the shame that stems from living with her parents, Kaleva directs her gaze to the space around her instead of hanging her head in embarassment. Keiu Maasik‘s video work A Ghost Story tells the story of a son and father that took place in an old rally game. A story where after his father’s death, the son at some point found his father’s ghost car in the game – a seemingly living part of his father stored in virtuality. Mark Raidpere‘s video Seaven Teares / Driftwood Songs (2017) combines abstracted movements with the longing diaries of a young man written in the 1960s, Tõnu Kõrvits’s arrangement Driftwood Songs and seven tears, e.g John Dowland’s Lachrimae or Seaven Teares from the late 16th century.

 

 

The title of the exhibition is borrowed from the accompanying text of Birgit Kaleva’s work Weizenbergi 51 (2026).

 

 

Birgit Kaleva (b. 1996), working under the artist name 𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘰𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘢, uses herself and her immediate surroundings as the basis of her artistic practice. Through a spontaneous and angular approach, she reframes autobiographical material, creating distance from personal experience and offering a clearer perspective on its underlying structures. Her work is informed by an interest in visual rawness and awkwardness in unexpected compositions. Kaleva graduated from the Pallas University of Applied Sciences with a degree in Photography (2024).

 

Keiu Maasik (b. 1992) has degrees in Photography (BA) and Contemporary Art (MA) from the Estonian Academy of Arts. In her work, she has explored themes such as the impact of documentation on memory, identity and interpersonal relationships. In her recent projects, Maasik has focused on the virtual world, using computer game recordings or similar aesthetics in her video works and installations to reveal the different aspects of virtual life. She is one of the nominees of the Köler Prize 2026. 

 

Mark Raidpere (b. 1975) is a photographer and video artist, exploring the dilemmas and fears of the human soul, insurmountable loneliness and the tragedy of fate with great sensitivity and insight. Raidpere’s research often draws on his family’s universe, but sometimes takes on a social dimension, focusing on the marginalized, urban violence and street life. In 2005, Raidpere represented Estonia at the 51st Venice Biennale. His works have been exhibited in numerous international group and solo exhibitions and he has received several prestigious awards both in Estonia and abroad.

 

FOKU Gallery is a gallery-showroom focused on contemporary lens-based art. FOKU Gallery is run by the Estonian Union of Photography Artists (FOKU).

 

 

Supporters:

Cultural Endowment of Estonia, Peenjoogivabrik Nudist

 

Partner:

Rüki galerii

 

Technical support:

Reigo Nahksepp

 

Thanks to:

Artproof, Estonian Artists’ Association, Karel Koplimets, Madis Kurss, Tõnu Kõrvits

 

 

FOKU Gallery

Väike-Karja 10, Tallinn

Thu–Sat 12–18

And by appointment

Free entrance

 

Additional information:

Hedi Jaansoo

hedi.jaansoo@foku.ee

+37255944447

foku.ee/fokugalerii

IG foku_ee