"WARM MEADOW" Liene Mackus

Liene Mackus’ latest solo exhibition, “Warm Meadow”, is a continuation of her previous plant-related projects. The exhibition takes visitors on a journey through the meadow, as imagined by the artist during sleepless nights or moments of deep thought. Liene Mackus’ field of study in this project is a real meadow in the countryside, where she observes the plants, imagining them as objects and trying to sense their scent. By picking plants for herbal teas and herbariums, she seeks to embody the images of these plants in her dreams. She also explores plant pollen and the processes of pollination, reproduction, division, and wilting. This observation recurs year after year, like a dream, in which the artist expands her idea of plants as objects.

Liene Mackus metamorphoses plants into abstract objects by enlarging them and isolating their details from their context. The artist equates and compares their forms to her own body, organs, and textures. By altering their proportions, she creates a new perspective. This shift in perspective could be compared to the horizon line as seen by an ant or a spider. Liene Mackus pays special attention to vulnerary plants, which have helped humanity for centuries. By highlighting their importance, she symbolically creates sculptures as monuments to these plants.

The exhibition “Warm Meadow” also reflects Liene Mackus’ personal experience with gardening, which has become a form of meditation and an expression of care. It is a devotion to nature – an altar and a prayer for harmony between the earth and humanity.

Curated by Ilze Žeivate.

Liene Mackus is a visual artist, sculptor, and illustrator specializing in animation and book illustration, as a scenographer and costume designer has collaborated with the Latvian Puppet Theatre. Liene is known for her ability to blend various artistic disciplines, creating unique objects and installations that address social and environmental themes, encouraging reflection on the individual’s relationship with the surrounding environment, society and addressing issues of women’s collective identity. She identifies as an eco-feminist and describes herself as a poetic documentarian. Her works are characterized by a deep connection with nature and natural processes.

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About the gallery

MAKSLA XO Gallery is one of the Riga city’s most important galleries, located in Riga’s notable Art Nouveau district, at Elizabetes Street 14, on the ground floor of functionalist building designed by architect Teodors Hermanovskis.  Since its establishment in 1999, MAKSLA XO has focused on contemporary and emerging painting, sculpture and works on paper of Latvian art. The gallery showcases a diverse range of styles, from traditional representation to contemporary urban and social art, representing both Latvian and internationally recognized artists.   The founder and curator of MAKSLA XO Gallery Ilze Zeivate represents such important names of Latvian contemporary art as – Helēna Heinrihsone, Ivars Heinrihsons, Ieva Iltnere, Kristaps Ģelzis, Jānis Mitrēvics, Ilmārs Blumbergs, Ģirts Muižnieks, Kristaps Zariņš, Leonards Laganovskis, Vineta Kaulača, Paulis Liepa, Arturs Berziņš, Romans Korovins, as well works with international known artists – Marko Mäetamm, Bodo Korsig, Stephen Wilks, Erik Mattijssen, Michel Castaignet.

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