The Exhibition ”Submarine War”
The Exhibition Series “Submarine War” Continues in Liepāja
Starting 11 July, the gallery “Romas dārzs” in Liepāja will host the group exhibition “Submarine War. Episode 13 – Trans-Europe Express”, continuing a unique tradition in Latvian art history: a 30-year-long synthesis of author design and other arts through collective exhibitions.
The phenomenon of the artist collective *Submarine War* began in 1995 and has since manifested in nearly 20 exhibitions over three decades. This year, it also gained significant professional recognition – “Submarine War: Episode 1.1. 30 Years” at the Latvian Museum of Architecture (March–May 2025) was nominated by the jury for public voting in the “Heritage” category of Latvia’s public media award “Kilograms kultūras”.The exhibition in Liepāja’s “Romas dārzs” gallery is the third hosted there by the group, organized by curator and designer Valters Kiršteins. The latest collection, titled *Submarine War. Episode 13 – Trans-Europe Express, invites artists to “draw inspiration from the experiences of real and imagined journeys” while staying within a shared conceptual framework, exploring the romanticism of retro-futurism. The number and lineup of artists vary in each “episode,” but the core principle remains: the exhibitions unite creators of art and metal design with artists from other genres and media, resulting in a diverse body of work—three-dimensional objects, paintings, graphics, and photography.The latest exhibition features 41 artists from multiple generations, including:
Valdis Celms, Māris M. Gailis, Armands Vecvanags sr., Modris Svilāns, Gints Zilbalodis sr., Lauris Rutkis, Egils Mednis, Toms Vītols, Mārtiņš Skuja, Arvīds Endziņš sr., Didzis Jurkovskis, Aleksandra Federika-Krastiņa, Skuja & Braden, Visvaldis Asaris, Marta Ģibiete, Pēteris Līdaka, Brūss Kalniņš, Valters Kiršteins, Aivars Benužs, Rūdolfs Kuncītis, Uldis Freimanis, Evija Freidenfelde, Kristians Brekte, Justīne Lūce, Madara Gulbis, Linda Zīvere, Agate Apkalne, Kate Seržāne, Ilona Abiļeva, Igors Bernāts, Gita Sprince, Sabīne Vekmane, Baiba Ābelīte, Jānis Murovskis, Ieva Baumgarte, Mārtiņš Krūmiņš, Gvido Kajons, Didzis Grodzs, Imants Urtāns, Santa Kirmuža.
The roots of this unique series date back to the mid-1990s, when a group of fellow students graduated from the Department of Industrial Design at the Art Academy of Latvia. At the time, Latvia’s industrial sector had significantly declined during the country’s transitional period, prompting these young artists to pursue a more dynamic and creative path—art design. They began creating conceptual, paradoxical, ironic, and highly refined three-dimensional objects intended for exhibitions as one-of-a-kind works rather than for mass production.
As described by Latvia’s first design theorist, art historian Herberts Dubins – whose lectures were attended by many Submarine War veterans—the essence of art design lies in the message, not in practical function.
Over time, artists from other disciplines joined the core group of designers and metal artists. Today, the number of participants in Submarine War episodes can exceed 30, representing diverse fields of art. Select exhibitions from the series have also been held internationally—in Spain, Belgium, France, including the prestigious Saint-Étienne Design Biennale (2002, 2004).
The exhibition “Submarine War. Episode 13 – Trans-Europe Express” will open on 10 July at the “Romas dārzs” art gallery, Zivju iela 3, Liepāja, and will be on view until 30 September.
Text: Ilze Martinsone, Kristīne Matīsa
Valters Kiršteins, Curator
