Since the 80s of the 20th century, Leonards Laganovskis has cleverly manipulated the techniques of social art and conceptual art in his works, creating semantically saturated multi-layered works of cultural space. Working in various forms of fine art - drawing, graphics, painting, photography and creating objects, Leonards Laganovskis uses text as the main tool in communication with the viewer. „ The color is not important in this case, the main thing is the text. Because what came first? Word. And this principle still stands.”
Photo from Māksla XO
For Laganovski, the text is not a decorative technique. The text forms both the form and the content of his artistic natures.
Leonard Laganovski’s works are characterized by a realistic documentary of the era, and they are ruthlessly topical – socially critical, full of subtle irony, or sharply directed against political ideology. Laganovski appeals to our collective memory. His works are puzzles for the mind based on science, literature, art, memories and associations…
“History is very complicated. The history of the country is what it is and I am a part of it. Willingly or not, I am in all those fights. And there are two ways to express your opinion. One is to curse someone over a glass of beer, the other is to participate. As an artist, I believe that my duty to participate is as follows – on paper or canvas. I don’t go into politics, I don’t speak at congresses and I don’t start a party, but I do this kind of work. I drew […]”
Leonards Laganovskis (1955) studied at the Department of Interiors and Equipment of the Latvian Academy of Arts, graduated from the Department of Painting with a specialization in scenography (1979). Gained extensive international experience, living in Germany for several years (1988–1994) and actively participating in its art life, organizing personal exhibitions and participating in group exhibitions abroad.
The works of Leonards Laganovskis are in public collections: Latvian National Art Museum (Riga, Latvia), future collection of Latvian Museum of Contemporary Art (Riga, Latvia), Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum, Rutgers University (New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA), Neue Berliner Kunstverein (Berlin , Germany), Kupferstich Kabinett (Bremen, Germany), Kunsthalle Bremen (Bremen, Germany), Reha-Klinik Lubben (Brandenburg, Germany), Artphilein Fonda (Vaduz, Liechtenstein), Estonian Art Museum (Tallinn, Estonia), Eesti Pank ( Tallinn, Estonia), National Center of Contemporary Art (Moscow, Russia), SPDyaghilev Museum of Contemporary Art (St. Petersburg, Russia).
Leonards Laganovskis lives and works in Riga, Latvia.
Galerii nimi: Māksla XO
Address: Elizabetes iela 14, Central District, Riga, Latvia
Opening hours: Mon-Sat 12:00 - 18:00
Open: 06.04.2023 — 06.05.2023
Address: Elizabetes iela 14, Central District, Riga, Latvia
Opening hours: Mon-Sat 12:00 - 18:00
Open: 06.04.2023 — 06.05.2023