Conceived specially for the Editorial Space, Treasure Hunt is created as the artist’s personal ‘museum of life,’ presenting her key exhibits: inspirations, experiences, memories, joys, and sorrows. Through associative forms and imagery, these elements weave a metaphorical and ironic narrative that unfolds over a decade of artistic practice. The piece tells of a continuous quest for balance in the labyrinth of everyday hopes, where the ‘treasure’ is that elusive moment of peace amid routine, stress, and pressure. Each daily task becomes part of a broader journey in search of small yet meaningful ‘treasures’ – moments of joy that can appear as a spark of inspiration during a walk or a guilt-free bag of potato chips devoured in delight.
The two-sided structure draws inspiration from Melnikova’s earlier works and mimics a treasure map, an eclectic collage of details unified by shades of white that form a subtle background. This serves as a blank canvas for her latest works – A Woman in Agrodolce and Apericena Dorata – which mix traditional and modern techniques with clear references to Renaissance art, celebrating the beauty found in everyday experiences.
Treasure Hunt invites us to appreciate daily existence, highlighting moments that might otherwise go unnoticed. It encourages us to seek beauty in our surroundings and fosters a deeper connection to the ordinary aspects of life.
Daria Melnikova (b. 1984) is a Riga-based artist whose mixed-media works result from a meditative study of daily routines, clichés, architectural details, casual moments, and historical references, which are further developed in a laborious process combining both handicraft and manufactured techniques. Since 2011, Melnikova has actively participated in group exhibitions and held solo shows across Riga, Vilnius, Tallinn, Milan (Italy), Palermo (Italy), Marseille (France), Prague, Umeå (Sweden), Ostrava (Czech Republic), Moscow, and Zurich (Switzerland). In 2019, Melnikova started the ongoing project Palette – a travelling platform that also functions as a bar. Focused on process and the exchange of experiences and ideas, Palette presents the viewer with a sequence of episodes unfolding here, there, or anywhere. During the summers of 2022-2023, Palette took the form of a seasonal venue – a kiosk/bar integrated into Riga’s urban landscape, namely in the Gardens of Sporta Pils. The intervention turned the artwork into an active meeting point for informal, non-institutional artist-visitor and artist-artist encounters. Melnikova’s work is included in the collections of Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art in Helsinki, Latvian National Museum of Art, Zuzeum Art Center in Riga, as well as in private collections.
Translation and textual editing: Alexandra Bondarev.
The exhibition is supported by the Lithuanian Council for Culture and Vilnius City Municipality. Editorial Space is open III-V 3-7 pm and VI 12-4 pm
