Lappy Mary aka Maria Lapteva "Secret vibrations"

ARS Project Space 24.04.– 16.05.2025

Mon–Fri 12–18, Sat 12–16

Opening on April 24 at 18

My approach to making art is definitely about diving into places I know very little about. I try not to explain too much. I think living with a sense of not knowing is perfectly normal. Living with this sense of uncertainty, we begin to create thoughts or images, or whatever we make, expecting that the object will somehow guide us. It seems to me that these images exist, perhaps, to help us figure out our own mystery, instead of someone telling us what that mystery is. These images are something we can use as a starting point to begin creating our own path. In my view, that’s exactly what art is supposed to do.

Creating work is about focusing on more complex and sometimes uncomfortable things. Perhaps a lot of the creative process comes from uncomfortable or even slightly painful experiences. Over time, you realize that the reason for using figurative art is essentially to create something like role-play, where different roles can be recreated. That’s why I like to break down figures and create new compositions from them. For example, I have a head that I want to use with a different body. What kind of body does it need? Does it even need a body at all? All kinds of bodies, in relation to the head, are closely tied to physical properties—they help the head stand up. And then the question arises: how else can you make the head stand? You can use a whole series of other figures to help keep the head upright. These figures represent the energy that supports the head.

When I work this way, I realize that, through this process, whole series of characters emerge that are necessary for everything to come together. Creating an image is a combination of functional solutions to make objects stand (or happen) in a certain way, and eventually, for them to come together into one form. In the process of creation, emotional possibilities unfold for me to fill these shapes with meaning, something I’m really interested in deciphering.

At this stage in my journey, all these bodies and situations still mostly remain in the realm of experimentation. And in fact, there’s almost nothing I approach with a pre-determined plan. It feels like a spell. You gather the necessary elements and throw them into a boiling pot. Then you just keep going, trusting that it will create its own sphere of energy.

Technical support and installation: DreamTeam

The artist wishes to thank: Pavel Laptev, Anna Lorenz, Diana Didyk, Jennifer Grant, Aleksander Litvinov

The exhibition is supported by: Cultural Endowment of Estonia and Estonian Artists’ Association.

Maria Lapteva’s works exist in a world between reality and paranoia, metaphor and possibility. In her artistic practice, she explores the distance between meaning and interpretation, and how the very existence of such a distance makes any fixed definitions impossible.

Maria Lapteva received her MA in Painting from the Estonian Academy of Arts in 2014. She has been exhibiting her work since 2008 and is a member of the Estonian Artists' Association and the Estonian Authors’ Society.

www.lappymary.com