Vika Matīson, after graduating from the Jānis Rozentāls Art School and studying painting with Masha Ainbinder (now living in Israel), received her diploma from the Moscow Polytechnic Institute (1996) and chose a distinctive path — one she calls the Way of the Dao, “where no wheel tracks can be found.”

Viktorija teaches painting, works in graphic design, and writes poetry and prose. The large-format works presented at the exhibition align with the tradition of abstract expressionism. In some pieces — particularly the central painting Glory to Ukraine! — a symbolic and even slightly figurative presence emerges. Another direction in her work is small, intimate portraits of friends and loved ones, rendered in a stylized “baroque” and vibrantly expressive manner.

The exhibition “Zem putnu ceļa” / “Under the Bird Path” is a collaborative project and dialogue between two artists of different generations: Silvija Brigita Mežkone (b. 1942) and Viktorija Matīson (b. 1972). Despite differences in age and artistic manner, both artists are united by their refusal to follow easy paths and their commitment to developing a unique personal style rooted in various layers of global culture.

Silvija Mežkone’s artistic formation began in the 1970s — a time of stagnation — when she chose to study not in Latvia, but at the Lithuanian State Institute of Art in Vilnius, graduating in 1970. During that era, the Riga art scene gathered in the legendary Old Town café “Kaza” (“The Goat”), where people discussed the latest in Western painting, film premieres, and the vibrant life of the local bohemia. From the beginning, Mežkone’s works have been imbued with a symbolic and often sacred dimension, filling her figurative compositions with spiritual energy — all while demonstrating masterful control of color and light to influence perception. Her works appeal to the emotions and invite deep reflection, often requiring the viewer to decipher the hidden symbolic message behind each canvas. Alongside more abstract compositions, the exhibition features a series dedicated to crows. These works blend ornithological sketches “from the window” with mystery and symbolism, transforming the birds into messengers from another dimension.