In addition a special prize – the opportunity to publish a photography book with the NoRoutine Books publishing house – was presented to Kristīne Krauze Slucka for her series ‘Vibrations of a material universe. Thirst of gold’.
This is the fourth year the Riga Photography Biennial’s Award for young Baltic photographers has been presented.
"The goal of the award is to discover and appraise the creative efforts of young artists who demonstrate the power of the image in their works, offering an original point of view and conceptual depth, suited to the times. The Biennial is seeking the portfolios of artists who stimulate discussion and offer diverse ideas. At the same time, we wish to provide a public platform for young artists at the beginning of their creative journey in photography or a medium associated with it, so that they can present themselves to a wider audience," said organizers.
The Riga Photography Biennial - NEXT received 45 applications from photographers from the three Baltic States.
The jury commented on the award-winning series ‘Looking forward to meet Me’: "Visvaldas Morkevičius' work is a playful interpretation of self-analysis, built with great creativity. His practice operates on the borderlines of photography and uses a brilliant mixed-media approach through which he creates a multi-layered visual scenario where the viewer is invited to not just observe a portrait made by an artist, but also look for his or her own. The project, conceived in recent months, is a mirror of contemporary social and cultural issues and addresses self-knowledge, introspection and self-acceptance."
The Riga Photography Biennial (RPB) is an international contemporary art event focusing on the analysis of visual culture and artistic representation. The biennial’s off-year programme, titled NEXT, focuses mainly on young and promising artists from the Baltics, Nordic countries and Europe who are still in the early stages of their careers. The Riga Photography Biennial – NEXT offers visibility and provides a platform for promising young artists to announce themselves to a wider audience and context. The third edition of the NEXT festival will take place in spring of 2021.
ISSP is a platform for contemporary photography that is based in Latvia and operates internationally. Since its establishment in 2006, ISSP has been fostering an active photography scene in Latvia, educating the young generation of artists and promoting international exchange.
