Alfred Kongo

The fate of Alfred Kongo is undoubtedly remarkable. He took up studies, when majority of others already started to work at the chosen profession: at the age of 23. Still, it took Kongo 11 more years until the graduation of “Pallas”, but his results were eye-catching: he was the one who repeatedly received the scholarship of the Cultural Capital. While graduating from the school, he was already a mature artist, who presented as graduation work landscapes and still-lives, which started “to form the basis of his creation” (Tiina Nurk). But from here on everything did not continue so very smoothly: first the difficult war years, thereafter already the 1940ies and 1950ies, when Kongo just refused to work. “We still secretly kept on painting, but Kongo couldn’t, he was so sensitive, ” said his friend Valve Janov. Only in the 1960ies the artist was able to start working more freely and at the end of the 1980ies he was is spite of his old age at his creative peak. The Konrad Mägi medal from the year 1985 and state purchases, incl. In the year 1987, are vivid examples of this. “Vaikelu lillekorviga”, originating from this period, shows us clearly the best traits of Kongo: powerful, even careless brush strike, but in the first range Kongo is here “the bearer of the unfaltering Pallas-style high colour culture” (Indrek Hirv).