“Obsessions” by Art Allmägi

On Thursday, 18 December, Art Allmägi’s solo exhibition Obsessions opens at Draakon Gallery. The exhibition will remain on view until 11 January 2026.

Art Allmägi: “My initial intention for this was to present my first exhibition on the theme of WORK. However, as I began preparing the show, this framework was increasingly unsettled by a renewed engagement with formal play, almost as an unplanned continuation of my exhibition Symbiosis which took place in October 2024. After that exhibition, I had been convinced that I would no longer produce works within the same formal register, as such explorations no longer felt necessary or conceptually justified within my practice.

Yet in the course of developing this new exhibition, I became aware that I was repeatedly sketching soft, fluid forms. What initially appeared as a marginal by-product gradually crystallised into a persistent mode of thinking. These seemingly insignificant formal experiments had clearly taken root in my subconscious, where they were evidently accorded the status of something akin to Michelin-starred haute art.

At a certain point, these recurring patterns of thought transformed into obsessive ideas, intruding my sleep. I came to understand that, in order to release myself from them, I would have to abandon the original WORK-based concept and instead foreground formal play – an approach that may appear secondary to my conscious intention, yet one that my subconscious evidently insists upon. I hope this exhibition offers viewers a sense of pleasure. For me, above all, it represents an attempt to restore mental equilibrium and to move forward.”

Art Allmägi (b. 1983) is a sculptor and installation artist living and working in Tallinn. He graduated from the Pallas University of Applied Sciences in 2008 and earned an MA in Sculpture from the Estonian Academy of Arts in 2011. He has been exhibiting since 2006 and worked in the Sculpture Department of the Estonian Academy of Arts from 2016 to 2020. His exhibitions unfold in thematic series, with each cycle giving way to the next after three to four exhibitions. His practice combines traditional sculptural techniques with a contemporary approach. He has received several major awards for his large-scale, labour-intensive spatial installations, including the Kristjan Raud Art Award (2018), the Ado Vabbe Stipend (2017), and the Köler Prize Audience Award (2016).

Supported by: the Cultural Endowment of Estonia
Artist thanks: Eva Mahhov
Exhibitions at Draakon Gallery are supported by the Cultural Endowment of Estonia, the Estonian Ministry of Culture, and Liviko AS.

Additional information:
Draakon Gallery
Tel:  +372 5645 1591
E-mail: galerii@eaa.ee
Pikk 18, 10133 Tallinn
www.hobusepeadraakon.ee
Wed, Fri-Sun 12.00-18.00 / Thu 12.00-19.00