Kaljo Põllu
(1934–2010)
Alone (From the Series 'Kodalased'). 1973
Mezzotint. Plm 35.5 x 49.3 cm (framed)
price 16 100
Kaljo Põllu’s series of Kodalased took on a larger-than-life significance in the art scene of the 1970s and 1980s, at a time when Karl Vaino was appointed the First Secretary of the Communist Party in Estonia, whose reign (from 1978) marked the most dimmed possible mental and spiritual situation. Kaljo Põllu’s Finno-Ugric-themed graphic sheets became very popular, they were like a breath of fresh air. The background to this is Kaljo Põllu’s work as a lecturer at ERKI (the Estonian State Art Institute, now EKA) and his scientific expeditions with students to the depths of Russia to visit Finno-Ugric peoples. Kaljo Põllu published two books in 1990 and 1999 as a documentation of his research trips, paying attention to ethnographic peculiarities, beliefs, etc. of the kindred peoples. This has influenced artists who went on expeditions as students at the time.