Biography
Latvian artist Eduards Metuzāls was born on March 3, 1899, in Rīga, into a family of Estonian workers. From 1907, he attended the evening painting school of Baltic German artist Bernhard Borchert (1862–1945). At the same time, from 1908 to 1910, he studied at the evening school of painting and drawing organized by the Rīga Latvian Society for the Promotion of Artists, where he specialized in interior design.
In 1910, Metuzāls traveled to Western Europe, where he worked as a dockworker in the port of Brussels and later as a painter in Cologne. In 1912, he moved to Switzerland, where he met representatives of the Latvian intelligentsia, including writers Aspazija and Rainis. In 1921, Metuzāls returned to Latvia and was awarded a Cultural Foundation scholarship for travel abroad. This enabled him to visit Italy in 1922 – a country he would return to several times before World War II.
The artist died on January 13, 1978, in Rīga.[1]
Artistic style
Metuzāls’s artistic style was characterized by realism. He painted landscapes of Latvia, Capri, and Switzerland, as well as figurative compositions and portraits. While living in Cologne, he focused on commissioned portrait work in pastel. During his time in Switzerland, he frequently portrayed Aspazija and Rainis.
Throughout his career, the artist held several solo exhibitions in Rīga, Tallinn, and Finland. Since 1914, he had regularly exhibited his works at the “Kunsthaus” gallery in Zurich.[2]
Interesting Facts
It’s said that the artist explored much of Europe on foot.[3]
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