Acquainting of the classics of the modern Estonian art continues from there, where we stopped the last time. When Jüri Arrak passed in the year 1966 the graduation examinations of the ESAI, Leonhard Lapin was already preparing for the entering examinations in summer. So the matters were settled - the Estonian vanguard art and Lapin became quickly synonyms. Let us also add to it a graphic designer, architect, art scientist and historian, poet and esseist and then we get Lapin. After participating in the grouping ANK' 64 in quite a superficial manner (let us remember - from the times of this grouping orifinated Jüri Arrak's "Figure" of the previous auction), Lapin concentrated with Andres Tolts and Ando Keskküla on the activity of the legendary "SOUP' 69". Just this grouping with its blurred borders, at the exhibitions of which participated among others Juhan Viiding and Sirje Runge, is a landmark on the landscape of modern Estonian art, from which allegedly ended the Parisian influence and started the influence of modern Western world, first of all the influence of the art of the USA. The SOUP grouping, being founded in the year 1969, organized exhibitions and first of all in Estonia also widely happenings, but while not having set any concrete borders, Lapin, Tolts, Keskküla and others started to move already in the beginning of the 1970ies along new paths. Still were heard appeals not to degenerate mentally and avoid deadlock, being caused by outdated convictions. Lapin and the company, which had gathered around him, talked gradually more often and more loudly of the requirement for new and different solutions, of the need to freshen up and air the general expression of the modern Estonian art. Of course the appeals to find new form expressing languages could not pass without the attention of political bodies on power - activity of the young vanguards was viewed as the resistance to the valid standards (what it also was), their works were removed from exhibitions that anyway were organized secretly and sometimes happenings lead to the arresting of the artists and their accusing of acts of hooliganism. In 1971 Lapin graduated from the ESAI as an architect. His professional activity covered projecting of several buildings, architectural-historical explanation and research work and projecting of architectural way of thinking into Lapin's graphic sheets. The minimalistic form of his works starts quoting the Russian vanguard of the 20. century and Lapin's creation starts to resemble with its certain displaced geometrical exactness and rationalism functionally "sober" architecture. Works of the mentioned patters were already exposed at the exhibition "Saku '73" in the year 1973, where Lapin's participation seemed self-evident. As logical was Lapin's organizing work at the following exhibitions, belonging to the classics of the modern Estonian art and at events that were held before the exhibition "Harku '75". It was Lapin's report, which summarized the principles and aims of the rapidly developing young vanguard art and often is seen in the half-secretly held exhibition, which was held at the Harku Microbiological Institute, the end of the Estonian vanguard, the symbolic start could be considered the SOUP'69 exhibition in the café "Pegasus" and the origin and development of which depended unavoidably to a great exactly on the person and activity of Leonhard Lapin. But Lapin's activity did not stop, rather on the contrary. We meet his name again and again, during the last three decades, while talking about the 1970ies, 1980ies and also the 1990ies. An artist and archtect, generator of ideas, lecturer ... Lapin and once again Lapin.
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In 1973 Lapin started his most probably the best known series "The machine", which today includes around 800 works. While having expanded in the course of years, exactly this series forms the most emblematic part of Lapin's creation, the previous sheets of which by today have become crestomatic works of the vanguard art of Estonia. Creation of works, which have already become of museum value, started at the period, when Lapin won prizes at internationally very prestigeous graphics biennales in Ljubljana and Tokio (accordingly in years 1973 and 1974). International success continued also later and lasts up to today: a number of exhibition invitations, prizes, lectures, purchases into recognized collections, etc. The current work belongs to the peak period of the the Estonian vanguard art and also the creation of Lapin, reflecting the features of importance for the author. Here meet erotics and futuristic belief into the machine, geometrical structures and diplaced sensuality, black circles and white lines. Lapin himself has described geometric structures as visual expressions of human energy and cosmis force. Let us remember - in the year 1975 stressing of such key words gave not only the impression of art historical matters, but were certain political expressions against the Soviet equalization, against man's changing into a machine. But this work includes some more layers. This work was exposed at one of undoubtedly most important exhibitions of vanguard "Harku'75". The original drawing of the picture, known to us from the art history still talks to us. But isn't it the essence of vanguard?