Still-life I

Rytas Jurgelis has been a member of the Union of Lithuanian Artists since 1995. His creative biography includes nearly three dozen solo exhibitions, and his works are displayed not only in Lithuania but also internationally.

Two key characteristics of Jurgelis's painting are color and texture, along with his long-standing preference for geometric forms, particularly the square. These elements give his work exceptional variety, while maintaining a subtle tone of lyricism.

In his paintings, it’s not a battle of colors that stands out, but their synergy. Colors, as expressions of emotional states, merge with the materiality of oil paints. This materiality is highlighted through the gloss or matte finishes, surface patterns left by painting tools, scratches, and textured reliefs that create changes in height. These effects are achieved by applying layers of paint in a formal manner, visible from the sides, sometimes through holes, and often sensed from the front.

The layered and colored surfaces not only create new variants of painted textures and the emotional states they evoke, but they also carry associative connections to other senses, such as taste or smell. In this way, storms of emotions play out on each square plane, where dramas or silent agreements unfold, and narratives emerge. The universality of these narratives allows viewers to interpret what they see in their own way. The artist guides these interpretations subtly, offering assistance concisely and minimally.

Art critic Kristina Jokubavičienė