Eastern European outsider art on display in Viljandi, Valga, and Tartu

This Saturday, an overview of the triennial exhibition "Hidden Works Expanding. Eastern European Outsider Art" ('Varjatud maailmade avardumine. Ida-Euroopa autsaiderkunst') opens in Viljandi, Valga, and Tartu.
More than 200 works by 59 authors are on display in the three cities as part of the Tartu 2024 main program.
It presents Outsider Art mainly created in Eastern Europe, as well as rarely seen images from Western Europe.
Curator Mari Vallikivi said the exhibition mostly showcases art born in social isolation from psychiatric institutions and special care homes.
"The works were also created in the course of art therapy sessions under the guidance of instructors. In some cases, art is the creator's only means of communication with the outside world," she said. "With this exhibition, we wish to say that a diagnosis should not shadow an artist's work, and should engage the vulnerable artists in the art world and society as a whole."
The exhibitions can be seen at the University of Tartu Museum, Viljandi's Kondas Center, and Valga Museum.
The exhibition's second curator, Eva Laantee Reintamm, said they are "conceptually interrelated and form a complementary whole".
"The three cities make an equilateral-sided triangle, where every side length makes up about 80 kilometers. Of course, it is difficult to say which symbol you should look for, but there could be a hint of greater equality in this," she said.
The triple exhibition is open to the public until September 29.
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Editor: Karmen Rebane, Lotta Raidna