Estonian Gallery Exhibition 'Continuing Bonds' Explores Grief Through Art

The Pallas Gallery is currently hosting "Continuing Bonds," an exhibition that delves into the multifaceted nature of grief through the works of three distinct artists. Inessa Saarits, Anna-Liisa Sääsk, and Irakli Toklikishvili collaborate with curator Kerly Ritval to contemplate loss, whether it be the death of a loved one, the absence of homeland, or the paths not taken.

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Continuing bonds offers the opportunity to slow down and reflect.

Saarits's contribution focuses on objects left behind by her late mother, transforming antique chairs and seashells into silent witnesses of a life lived. These items, once imbued with her mother's stories, now evoke a sense of absence and memory. Sääsk, who has lived in Georgia, explores feelings of belonging and longing, reflecting on how the distinction between her homeland and Georgia has blurred, leaving her with a sense of not fully belonging to either.

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The exhibition focuses on objects left behind by her late mother – found objects and antique chairs collected during her life. When her mother was alive, each object carried a narrative story. Now that the storyteller has passed away, the stories are gone, and the objects have become silent witnesses to a person's life.

Toklikishvili, a Georgian artist, addresses grief as a collective experience, particularly in a country where democratic values are not guaranteed. His work touches upon lost freedom, shattered hopes, and enduring faith in the possibility of change. All three artists draw inspiration from nature, using sculpture, painting, graphics, and animation to represent the inevitable cycles of birth, death, decay, and renewal.

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Now, having lived there for some time, such a distinction has disappeared – both countries have become her homelands, but not entirely and not fully.

The exhibition "Continuing Bonds" offers a space for reflection on the process of adapting to loss, as described by Mary-Frances O'Connor in "The Grieving Brain." It highlights the creation of continuing bonds with the deceased through internal conversations, memories, and significant objects. The exhibition runs from July 10 to August 8, 2026.

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Living in a country where democracy, freedom of speech, and European values are not a given, he also addresses grief as a collective experience – through lost freedom, broken hopes, and the persistent belief that change is possible.