Heart transplant shapes artist’s first solo exhibition

Artist Andre Joosep Arming has opened his first solo exhibition, “Chain Reaction,” at Hobusepea Gallery in Tallinn, ERR reported. Arming said visitors could take from the exhibition the idea that everyone has only one life, while adding that he personally distinguishes between his first and second lives after undergoing a heart transplant.

“The first 27 years of my life were very difficult. I was born with heart failure, and most of that life was physically and generally hard. I never felt like a normal person,” Arming said.

He said that after the difficulties ended with the operation in October 2022, he began viewing life differently. “My quality of life increased hundreds of times and I began to enjoy very simple things. An inner peace had emerged in me,” he said.

His artistic work also changed. In his second life, Arming began experimenting more and looking for new ways to approach photography. Although he has a bachelor’s degree in photography, he said he had initially felt intimidated by the medium and by colleagues who worked at a very high level.

“In my first life, I tried as hard as possible to create top-level work because I did not have enough resources to be as capable as my colleagues. I was constantly hungry,” he said.

The exhibition also includes his new series “Don Quixote I,” which Arming said reflects how he sees himself. He described it as a collection of fragments and visions that formed and changed over the years, sometimes becoming other things and leaving him unable to recognise himself.

For the exhibition’s opening ceremony, Arming organised a large masquerade ball in the streets of Tallinn’s Old Town. He said he felt a responsibility as an artist to give a platform and voice to the people who had taken the time to see his work. He also highlighted arriving at Hobusepea Street in a horse-drawn carriage with white horses and greeting visitors at the Renaissance-themed ball.

“We all have one life, and this life-affirming attitude and energy can be used at any moment. There are better and worse days, but that does not diminish our value,” Arming said.