On the 22th of July the exhibition of Ove Büttner’s paintings was opened in Viimsi St James Church. This is not a one-time event, but should introduce the activities of the church gallery. The exhibition that will be opened to the public up to the end of August includes a selection of Büttner’s works created in the recent years, for instance, his series of paintings, Creatures Go to the Holy Top, (the photo presents a painting from the series) and a part of his exhibition, Life is a Halo. During the exhibition a brand new work that contemplates on the theme of the apostle James the Elder, after whom the church has been named, should be exhibited, too.

The modern architecture of Viimsi church – the building was just recently completed and inaugurated on the 25th of July – is an ideal room for exhibiting modern art. The bulk of Büttner’s predominantly abstract paintings on religious or symbolic themes have been placed on the walls of the church main hall. The selected exhibition space – to use the holiest of holy premises in the church building as the main exhibition gallery – presents certain substantial frames for exhibited art, because the works are not temporary components of church interior, but also in a way participate in divine services held in the church main hall. And I really do not know how many Estonian churches are involved in sporadic or regular exhibiting of modern art; however, it is not easy neither to select an artist nor the works of art to expose in such environment. Erkki Juhandi, the Deacon of Viimsi St James Church, who initiated the project of the church gallery, nevertheless hopes that the practice widely employed elsewhere in the world will become usual both in Viimsi commune as well as everywhere in Estonia.

The present exhibition is a good example, how the works of art that have not been conceived neither for the certain religious institution nor for religious purposes, harmoniously match with church environment and leave its temporary trace on it.