On Friday, 29 May, at 17:00, the contemporary art exhibition Mierā! (At ease!) was opened in the courtyard of cultural centre “Wiktorija” Organised by the Liepāja 2027 Foundation, the exhibition brings together artworks that explore creative practices of peacebuilding, and the works will appear at the storefronts of 36/38 Graudu Street in Liepāja, where they will remain on view until 29 June.
“This exhibition finalises the three-part series we’ve been running in the lead-up to Liepāja’s European Capital of Culture year. The first one, back in 2024, was out on the Tirgoņu street, and the second was at the Peter’s Market last year – both of those were really about the more active, energetic side of human nature. For this final chapter, though, I wanted to do something a bit more introspective. It’s dedicated to finding a sense of peace and looking at the creative habits that help us stay grounded when everything around us feels so socially and politically chaotic. Those thoughts, especially when you pair them with this specific space, guided how I chose the pieces. So much of the art we see today is just a reaction to world events, like an active protest or some big manifesto. The works here are doing something quite different. They’re more of a creative breather from reality, giving us a bit of space to look inward and showing how the simple act of making things can be a form of therapy in itself”, says curator Ieva Rubeze.
For this exhibition, Pēteris Rubezis has created a new piece, “Dūmi Kāpās” (Smoke in the Dunes, 2026) – an architectural installation that beckons to embark on a journey of creative discovery. It doesn’t simply entertain but offers an opportunity to engage, allowing one to reconcile their own thoughts. Whereas, Vita Liepiņa, both artist and musician, presents two works: “Bez darba rokas meklē nedarbus” (Idle Hands Seek Idleness, 2025) and “Batika” (2024), both exploring crocheting as a rhythmic, cyclical process, almost mechanical in nature, that gently calms and steadies the mind.
Pēteris Rubezis (born 1994) is an artist whose primary creative environment is the urban landscape. His large-scale paintings pursue the aesthetic and conceptual transformation of space, and his works integrate organically into the everyday rhythm of the city – not confined to galleries or museums, but freely accessible in public space.
Vita Liepiņa (born 2000) is a musician and artist who wittily brings together digital media and handcraft in her work. She is a member of the band “Aston Kais” (formerly known as “Grupa Harijs”) and the creator of the Grupa Harijs’s music video track “ДЕНЬГИ ll”.
The exhibition forms part of the “CreArt Creative Europe” international art initiative, through which contemporary art events are staged in May in unconventional venues across European cities. CreArt is a network of 13 medium-sized European cities that for 15 years has been supporting contemporary art and artists.
The exhibition is organised by the Liepāja 2027 Foundation with financial support from the Liepāja, South Kurzeme and Kuldīga municipalities, the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Latvia, and is co-financed by the European Union’s Creative Europe programme project CreArt 3.0 #STRINGING_TOGETHER. The “Liepāja 2027” programme is supported by its principal partner in environmental education and sustainability, AS “CleanR Grupa”, Jsc; its principal partner in air mobility and international communications, AS “airBaltic Corporation”, Jsc; legal partner SIA “Sorainen ZAB”, Ltd; and land mobility partner, SIA “Lux Express Latvia”, Ltd. Media partners: VSIA “Latvijas Sabiedriskais medijs”, Ltd. and AS “Kurzemes Radio”, Jsc.
Released by:
Foundation Liepāja 2027
Public relations specialist
Kristiāna Paula Lībiete
Phone: + 371 22 355 771
E-mail: kristiana.libiete@liepaja2027.lv
