ETERNAL CHILD
Ruta Štelmahere (Latvia)
Our individual creative journeys and their histories are inherently diverse, shaped by our lived experience and acquired wisdom that guides us in the rhythmical unfolding of our days. For Ruta Štelmahere, poet and visual artist, the most defining moments of her life have been establishing an intimate relationship with God, the birth of her two children and the passing of her parents – all major turning points that brought new meaning and a different sense of purpose to her world. “These moments”, she reflects, “have been my sacred, enigmatic glimpses of eternity when I have brushed the curtain that separates us from the great beyond. Between these watersheds is daily life with its hard lessons that teach to love and to forgive.” Indeed, experience is the quintessential school of life, which has the power to help one grow in spirit and resilience without losing the genuine and unaffected authenticity of one’s eternal inner child.
The child within us will be either near or distant, depending on how ready we are to embrace it. How vulnerable, free and openly receptive we are to the world, how primed for calm acceptance, genuine encounter, and, fundamentally, existence.
“A shining image flashes in the cloud of light that is my childhood – my first awareness of eternity and time, infinity and space. Immediately, ageless archetypal questions are storming through my fledgling mind. I’m wondering what existed before I came to be and what will happen once I am gone. What does it mean to be and never end? And how can something have no end?” the artist recollects. “Our inner child is growing and maturing as we live, yet it remains a child, holding the hand of God the Father, our eternal origin and destination.”
The artist navigates these timeless questions in her painting with depth and reverence for the sacred, endlessly reaching for the edge of light and bearing faithful witness to its revelations. The witness theme is most profoundly felt here, in her latest exhibition, yet it is also present in her other work – the paintings she displays in other venues and the poetry she writes.
Curator Māris Čačka
Ruta Štelmahere, born on 11 January 1965 in Jelgava, has lived in Jēkabpils since 1988. After completing initial studies at the Rīga Secondary School of Applied Art, where she specialised in textile (1980–1985), Štelmahere earned a degree in art education from the Art Academy of Latvia’s Latgale Branch (1999). A decade later, she returned to the Academy to complete her MA in painting (2001).
In addition to a long and rewarding career at the Jēkabpils Art School, where she has taught since 1993, Štelmahere has published multiple poetry books and written cultural commentary. Her poetry has been shortlisted for several awards, with her collection “Klēpis” (2011) receiving Best Poetry Book honour at the Latvian Literature Award 2012.
Štelmahere’s exhibition record dates back to 2001 and includes a dozen solo shows and numerous group exhibitions in Latvia and beyond. Her work is held in the Rothko Museum Collection.
Exhibition duration: 29.11.2024–23.02.2025
Photo: Ruta Štelmahere, Eternal Child, oil and mixed media on canvas, 50 x 50 cm, 2005
