Maik Kalberg Greenhouse and Ocean Dreams

The Greenhouse series of paintings started from building a greenhouse for the artists’ retired father and connecting with the romantic side of botany and gardening. By observing the growth of plants as living beings, painting enabled to amplify the sense of progress and development even more. Greenhouse as an ecosystem also symbolises natural co-existence which is expressed by unexpected character and plant combinations. The harmony between plants of different sorts and sizes can be interpreted as a protest against inciting rage concerning race, family or gender. The artist points out that a person is never born racist or homophobic – the anger derives from greed, colonialism and using religion and spirituality as weapons for controlling society. Second, the greenhouse motif points at the environment, nature and climate and the critical situation of our planet. All of the above is done by playing with the symbols and elements of popular culture – figurative art, films and video games. Finally, the Greenhouse series looks at the circle of life and death in general, by showing seasons as parts of the cycle of life in a tough climate, where winter symbolises death and summer symbolises the rebirth of blooming life.

Maik Kalberg (born in Tartu, 1987) is an Estonian painter and filmmaker with a degree in filmmaking from Baltic Film and Media and Arts School. As an artist, Maik aims to create positive energy through his existence and creation; and to find a useful and practical behaviour pattern the least. People shall not just be a burden for the environment they are a part of, but should use their existence to create something uplifting.