This year saw the release of the fourth edition of porcelain cups in the Streets of Baltics series — a collaborative project between the Krasta Keramika studio and artists and illustrators from Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia. The project was initiated and implemented by Esmeralda Purvišķe and Zahars Ze, founders of Krasta Keramika. In the Nice Touch section, Zahars, who won this year’s Baltvilks Prize for children’s book art, talks about an activity that helps him not only to recharge his batteries but also to collaborate with others.
«Artists and designers need to take a break from work every now and then — to restart and think. How can you do that in the city? By playing sports! My sport is soccer, which reboots me physically and mentally every Wednesday. For me, it’s the best way to deal with negative energy, get excited, have fun, sweat, and meet new people. Sometimes it’s hard to get out of bed the next day, but it’s worth it. I’m very lucky to be playing soccer in very creative, friendly teams, which include people from different backgrounds and nationalities, with whom I would probably never communicate otherwise.
It is often said that soccer is the most important of the unimportant things. That’s absolutely true! Soccer is exciting, whether you’re playing on the field or watching it on TV or in person. I recommend everyone to go to the Skonto Stadium when the national team is playing and experience the atmosphere there! Even better, if you have the opportunity, attend one of the European league games or derbies in England, the Netherlands, Italy, or Spain. It’s impressive! The huge, packed stadiums give you an extraordinary adrenaline rush and a great deal of joy.
Team spirit is the most important thing for scoring goals, and soccer has taught me the ability to collaborate in creative work as well. For example, in the Streets of Baltics project, which I really enjoy, we collaborate with artists from all three Baltic countries. No one has ever turned down participation in this project. The artists are different, but the porcelain cup is the same!»
Zahars Ze is an artist, designer, and illustrator who works with a wide variety of materials, techniques, and genres. Together with Esmeralda Purvišķe, he runs the Krasta Keramika studio, offering modern and creative handmade porcelain and ceramic objects. They also carry out the Streets of Baltics project, inviting artists from all three Baltic countries to create graphics for Esmeralda’s cup design.
Zahars is also known as a graffiti artist who has been successful at various street art festivals and creates murals in Latvian cities. Zahars has also tried his hand at illustration — this year, he received the Jānis Baltvilks Prize for children’s and youth literature for his drawings in Helga Tormane’s book series about Jukī.
Viedokļi