AUGUST KÜNNAPU
RESEARCH TRIP TO THE WILDERNESS
GALLERIA LIVE, TENHOLANTIE 10B, HELSINKI
29.11.21 – 07.01.22

AUGUST KÜNNAPU

ROHELINE PEEGEL / THE GREEN MIRROR

VABADUSE GALLERY (VABADUSE VÄLJAK 6, TALLINN) 26.06.–15.07.2014

I'm planning to publish a catalogue called "The River of Life" that contains paintings and exhibition views from 2008–2013. This is a kind of sequel to my previous album with reproductions of paintings, murals and installations completed between 1996 and 2007.
The catalogue comes out in November on the occasion of my exhibition
"The River of Life" (01.11. 2013–12.01.2014) at the Tartu Art Museum, Estonia.

"The River of Life" presents a selection of my more important recent works: series of paintings of gymnasts, cats, sportsmen, architecture, creative people and native peoples, but also several commissioned works of families, justice, footballers, BMW, a pellet factory and a phone call on the street corner. I always try to capture the soul of whatever I am portraying, and not imitate the outline. The best of my work primarily examines man’s essence, the rituals, joys, sorrows and invisible life currents of his daily life. My paintings are positive, I treat everybody and everything I portray with respect and warm humour.

The texts of the art book are written by Mehis Heinsaar, Mare Joonsalu, Aleksandra Got and August Künnapu. They are translated from Estonian to English by Tiina Randviir. The catalogue is designed by Piia Ruber.

Please support the printing of "The River of Life" and have a look at the video clip:
http://www.hooandja.ee/projekt/august-kunnapu-maaliraamat-elujogi

All kinds of support is very important to me, Dear Visitor of My Homepage!

AUGUST KÜNNAPU “A FEW WORDS ABOUT SPORTS”
CAFE/RESTAURANT BONAPARTE (PIKK 45, TALLINN) 10.09. – 31.12.2013

For about dozen years one of August Künnapu’s favourite themes in painting is sports. He likes dynamic compositions, striking colours and catching the right moment in sportsman’s psychology and facial expression. At the current show we can see seven paintings from the last eight years, from figure skating to tug-of-war.

Art historian Mare Joonsalu writes in August Künnapu’s new book of paintings “The River of Life”, which comes out on November 1 the following:

“The topic of health continues in Künnapu’s sport-related pictures, the more so that they mostly depict recreational sport. The choice of topic could well reveal a little trend awareness. Recreational sport is a hot topic, the media is endlessly promoting any kind of movement, there are numerous popular sporting events, parks and forests are filling with joggers. Healthy mind in a healthy body is the name of a series of Künnapu’s paintings. He places his sportsmen on a seaside, tennis court, ice-rink, football field. What unites these characters is enthusiasm bursting out of every pore. It does not matter that the movements are often funnily clumsy and angular. Künnapu has employed his irony-flavoured humour to the full. These Latvian or Estonian figure skaters really look silly, and the gymnasts or various other characters are no less funny.”

The Rebel Magazine's interview with August Künnapu