Rūtenė Merkliopaitė (Rūtė Merk)
She studied painting at the Vilnius Academy of Arts between 2009 and 2013.
Rūtenė Merlikopaitė’s ongoing painting series Heart matters consists of four pictures from the series “Christina” and three figurative paintings from the series “McQueen”. “Christina” reflects the artist’s creative method, whereby an artwork begins as an abstraction, but in the process of painting acquires specific representational motifs. “Christina” can be a coat of arms, an arch, or the outline of a portrait – Merlikopaitė tries to grasp at the potential of an emerging figurative image without ever making it concrete. The “McQueen” works are repainted from photographs showing the different collections of the British fashion designer Alexander McQueen and incorporate motifs from traditional painting genres such as portrait painting, interiors and equestrian art. By appropriating certain images and placing them within the field of painting technique the costumes, interiors and objects become abstract gestures, colours and strokes.
