Mati Uprus 1963 Doublerain . 2025

Mati Uprus was born in 1963 in Põlva. He studied graphic arts but has created many paintings. His works are highly diverse, depicting different motifs in varying styles. Art historian Krista Piirimäe has described Uprus’s work as follows: “Mati Uprus refers to his exhibitions as reports to his friends; they have never been attempts to enter the mainstream art scene (he has even refused to join the Artists’ Union). The artist primarily paints small-format everyday scenes, portraits—or rather faces—interiors, and abstract works in oil and acrylic. He approaches each work differently: some paintings are monochromatic and hazy, others colorful and detailed; some show drawing, proportion, or perspective errors, while others display excellent skills in portraiture and drawing.

Uprus’s work mostly radiates warmth, and his characters’ activities are often humorous. The artist’s perspective can be sincerely naïve at times and ironic at others.

He has an innate sense of color and rhythm, but his mastery of light has been achieved through practice. In some of his interiors, the flow of light plays a more important role than the objects themselves, with light providing the main emotional impact of the painting.”