Jüri Arrak 1936–2022 House. 1970

The dominant image in this work is the window. In the history of Western art, the window has been a crucial metaphor since the Renaissance, when painting itself began to be interpreted as a window to another world. Surprisingly, there was a lot of window motif in pan-Soviet art (which is now being discussed retrospectively in some Facebook groups), but in a romantic, spiritual sense, probably as a subconscious aspiration towards a decision free from national predetermination. Jüri Arrak’s window and the anonymous person behind the window (because blue could mean heaven) raises questions about the viewer and the subject. A wide variety of narratives can be built into the picture. Unfortunately, there is no longer the artist to ask for the so-called correct interpretation.