Birgit Püve (EE, b. 1978) is a visual artist and arts educator based in Estonia. She holds an MA in Social Sciences from the University of Tartu, graduating in 2017. In her work, Püve focuses primarily on the exploration of memory and identity through the photographic medium, as well as through video, sound and text. In her most recent project, she investigates how mental landscapes are shaped by the surrounding environment – and vice versa. Püve’s works have been presented in both solo and group exhibitions in Europe, the UK and the United States, whilst her images have featured in publications such as TIME Magazine, The New York Times and The Washington Post.
Love all men, but keep distant from all men
– Isaac of Nineveh
Depopulated mountains and deserts have often served as significant symbols in the context of ‘escaping’ in history. These landscapes become sanctuaries for those who long to be away from – or have been forced to escape – their communities, whether for a time or for good. Examples can be found among Buddhist monks or in Eastern Christianity, where exile is a means for a person to find their true being, unrestricted by the limits of society or their own ego. The word Ihidaya has roots in the Syriac language, referring to ‘solitary’ or ‘singleness’, but equally to describe souls that enter into a mystical oneness. When a man faces himself alone, with everything that arises in solitude and stillness, help from ‘above the mountains’ can be sought.
Most of these artworks – shown at the fair alongside a limited edition artist’s book – were produced during an artist residency in Georgia’s Caucasus Mountains.
