Baņuta Ancāne. PORTRAITS
A portrait has always been widely developed and practiced genre of fine art, which can also be considered as one of the most interesting ways to attract the attention of both the viewer and the artist.
Regardless of the power and influence of contemporary art, a portrait through destruction of bridges between styles and genres is widely used today – in graphic art and painting, as well as in photography and video art.
Like in other forms of art, the 1970s is a rather productive era for development of graphic portraiture. This was the time when lithography of the graphic artist Baņuta Ancāne begun to flourish. Her works were printed on a lithographic printing press of the House of Artists brought from Daugavpils in the 1950s…
Presence of Latgale in Baņuta Ancāne’s compositions and the very specific technique characterised by layering of colours and “graining” discloses strength, confidence, willingness and tremendous patience.
The artist herself also comes from Latgale – the beautiful Latvia’s border town of Kārsava, where she was born in 1941. Until eight years of age B. Ancāne lives with her parents in Subate, then she moves to Riga where she goes to school, studies art and spends her life.
Baņuta Ancāne is an excellent representative of the graphic portrait and still life whose name is engraved with gold letters in the golden era of Latvian graphics. However the artist does not stop there and continues her graphic perceptions in pastel and watercolour. She moves with the times while maintaining her strong position in representation of personages and spaces and being in harmony with images portrayed by her.
Since 1961 the artist has held several solo exhibitions in Latvia and abroad, as well as actively participated in group exhibitions and received numerous significant awards and recognitions.
Māris Čačka
