FINAL OPEN STUDIO OF THE AiR PROGRAM "DE/CONSTRUCTION OF PAINTING" IN LEIPZIG
From October 10 to 12, 2025, two new exhibitions by international artists will be on view at Jochen Hempel Art Gallery – “Between” by Kristaps Priede (Latvia) and “Dear Babies…” by Klara Rusan Klarxy (Croatia). The exhibition is part of the residency De/Construction of Painting, as part of the European project CreArt 3.0.
DE/CONSTRUCTION OF PAINTING CONCEPT:
The project De/construction of Painting encourages and addresses contemporary artistic practices within the context of the visual arts center of Eastern Germany, Leipzig, which has transformed into a global hub for the arts with a focus on the painting scene. The former industrial complex Spinnerei in the Plagwitz district spans 10 hectares and has been almost entirely renovated, now serving as the heart of the local and international art scene with 12 galleries, the non-profit art center Halle 14, and around a hundred resident artists. The residency program De/construction of Painting tries to answer the following questions:
- To what extent is the idea of an image/painting still a cultural construct within various dichotomies (Western-Eastern, industrial-post-industrial)?
- How does the media in which the painting is formed correspond to the concepts of representing different realities?
- What is individual in the image/painting and what is symbolic or universal?
Part of this year’s residency program takes place within the EU project CreART 3.0, a European network of medium-sized cities aimed at exchanging experiences and best practices to promote contemporary art through a continuous transnational mobility program for emerging artists, curators, and cultural workers, in order to maximize the economic, social, and cultural contributions that creativity can bring to local communities. As part of the EU project CreART 3.0, 4 residencies will take place in Leipzig in 2024, each lasting 5 weeks, including 2 Croatian and 2 foreign artists from the network of cities.
Project web page: https://residencyleipzig.hdlu.hr/
The exhibition “Between” explores the boundaries of painting and its ability to reflect reality, cultural constructs, and human experience within contemporary space. Created in Leipzig – a city between East and West, between industrial and post-industrial identities – it becomes a symbolic space “in between.” Across twelve works – paintings, puzzles, and smaller compositions – architecture and environment transform into fields of reflection on perception, solitude, and transformation. The clarity of Bauhaus forms meets industrial surroundings, where the human figure becomes a silent observer, a point of reflection. “Between” is a meditation on painting as process – on what is individual and what is universal, what remains and what changes.
The exhibition "Dear Babies..." presents the artist’s latest body of work — a deeply personal reflection on identity, time, and transformation. With this new series of oil paintings before you, the artist creates a painterly portrait of her own life at the age of 31, which she wishes to leave as a personal testament to her future children, offering them a unique insight into the intimate life of a person currently transitioning from one stage of life to another. Klara paints six large-scale canvases depicting scenes from her own life, which she has organized into three main areas or categories, following the structure of classical horoscope columns: health, love, and finances. This overtly cynical and humorous approach, present from the conception of the idea to its full realization, is a hallmark of Klara Rusan’s artistic practice.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS:
Kristaps Priede (b. 1990, Latvia) is a Latvian conceptual artist whose multidisciplinary practice spans painting, sculpture, documentary photography, installations, and performance. His work delves into contemporary social, political, and environmental issues, using contrast and transformation as central tools to explore destruction and renewal. Priede adapts his methods to each project, often blending natural and man-made elements to challenge perception and provoke reflection. Rooted in both critical inquiry and emotional depth, his art invites viewers to confront inner and societal tensions—offering space for identification, catharsis, and change. With a strong commitment to environmental and human rights concerns, Priede’s practice seeks not just to raise awareness, but to inspire dialogue and collective action through art.
Klara Rusan (b. 1993, Croatia) earned a bachelor’s degree at Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb at the department of Animated Film and the New Media. Plans of pursuing a career in animation were superseded by her receiving a Masters in Authorial Illustration at the Falmouth University of Art in 2017. Her graduate thesis earned recognition as she was the recipient of the ‘Masters of Art Illustration Authorial Practice: Award for Outstanding Creative Writing’. While being a participant in a number of group exhibitions (36 Mountains festival of illustration, Erste fragmenti, To be continued…comics and visual culture in Croatia), she held her debut solo exhibition at the Oris House of Architecture in 2018 where she presented her first graphic novel Where Do People Go After They Die?. In 2024. she had her first international solo exhibition ADHD – Pool of thoughts.
Address: Jochen Hempel Art Gallery, Spinnereistrasse 7, Halle 4, Leipzig, Germany.
Opening: October 10 at 7:00 PM.
Opening hours: October 11 and 12, from 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
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