Concert “…Closer Than Next to You”

On September 20th at 6:00 PM, an evening specially created and dedicated to artist Džemma Skulme's 100th birthday, “…Closer Than Next to You”, will take place at the Mālpils Cultural Center.

Džemma Skulme (20.09.1925 – 09.11.2019) is remembered not only as an outstanding painter but also as a socially active woman. This time, we invite you to meet another side of Džemma – as seen by her husband, painter Ojārs Ābols, and as perceived by writer Gundega Repše. It will be a very personal encounter between the audience and the two artists: actor Gundars Āboliņš will read fragments from the letters Ojārs Ābols wrote to Džemma 74 years ago, while pianist Andrejs Osokins will perform masterpieces of piano music by Latvian and Western European composers, inviting the audience to immerse in the world of thoughts and feelings of Džemma and Ojārs. Džemma's presence will be felt only in the silence, words, and music….

The concert is crafted using texts from Gundega Repše's book “Close-ups. Džemma Skulme” and fragments of letters written to Džemma by Ojārs Ābols in 1951/1952. (Published by “Jumava”, 2000, 2018.) 

Before the concert, at 4:00 PM, the exhibition “ROOTS” will be opened in the Mālpils Cultural Center's exhibition hall, featuring works by Džemma Skulme, her father Oto Skulme, and her mother Marta Liepiņa-Skulme. The exhibition will be on view until December 3, 2025, during the cultural center's working hours.