ROOTS is a result of Image and Philosophy classes guided by tutors Katrin Korfmann and ​​Maarten Cornel.

What was your work about?

Dans: "For my project "I Rock, Therefore I Roll" I attempted to understand my historical background and how to navigate it. I collected small rocks to study and magnify, as I did with my own pieces of history. In the process, I researched current subjects, like globalisation and stagnation, that concern concepts of 'back home’. As the final piece I created several papier-maché rocks, which I arranged differently throughout the opening of the exhibition. These large rocks are a metaphor of my Latvian identity, which serves as a basis for my future, as cornerstones do for a house. The continuous change of placement of the rocks represents the different influences, presence and implications one's core values can have on themselves. The title of the installation also implies: history stays, but you have a choice to alter the results."

Beren: "For my work, ‘The living room’, I rethought the memories, feelings it evoked in me as a child. From this I decided to restage, mimic my grandparents living room which I define it as a homey, comfortable and protective feeling. The visual approach I wanted to achieve was to create an environment, a space that would make me feel the emotions I felt in my grandparents' living room. I started collecting second hand decorative objects, furnitures, traditional fabrics. For this project it was really valuable for me to make it as real as possible and to rekindle the emotions."

Sonya: "My installation is an attempt to investigate values that stay behind the formation of the current political and vernacular narratives in Russia. The research focus is the concept of anguish, which is referred to as one of the core traits shaping the national consciousness. The domed space is inspired by the similarities between the architectural forms of a prison and church, showcasing the duality of the concept of suffering as a tool to suppress, but, at the same time, to survive. At the ceiling of the metal construction, there is a metal plate depicting an image of Oranta, a praying woman that was left alone. This image occurred when the Russian government announced partial mobilisation, which put most of the men in danger of being drafted.”

How did you experience the project?

Sonya: “So far, for me it was the most valuable project I have worked on. It is important on many levels, such as processing the difficult political and cultural situation I found myself in as a Russian person; finding ways to communicate a very specific and complex topic to the audience in an accessible way; dealing with the wight of it; being conscious about the choice of medium and material, and learning to work with it. I’ve got a lot from the project myself and, hopefully, succeeded in making someone else reflect on this as well."

Beren: “The way I approached the projects was very personal. Throughout the project I experienced some moments which were intense and very personal. I felt like it was a way of confronting myself and my family. Even though there were some hard moments emotional wise; overall, I managed the process well with the help of being sure about what I wanted and how to communicate with the audience.”

How did you experience the exhibition?

Beren: "It was a space where we share our roots with visual languages. It has become a space where me and visitors mutually share values. I kept my project open to different interpretations from different cultural backgrounds. Seeing people living my experiences and childhood memories in the exhibition was a powerful and touching scene for me."

Dans: "It was a super exciting experience, personally, for the first time having a proper exhibition here at school. I also participated in creating the visual identity, print materials, and the archive website for this exhibition. At the exhibition, I was quite surprised at the turnout, we even ran out of the more than hundred booklets less than an hour into the event."

What did you learn from this project?

Sonya: "I was in charge of organising it, and had a curatorial role together with my classmate Trang, so it gave me a lot of experience about how such events function from the inside. I learned to communicate my ideas clearly, to cut off what is not needed and limit myself to stay sharp, to share my process and struggles, to treat the feedback in a way that would benefit me."

Dans: "I learned a lot about exhibiting my work in the space, how a productive process, concerning a phyisical object, should look like – constant making and reflecting. Other than that, while working on the production of the exhibition, I also learned a lot about directing people, managing a big workload, and dealing with a budget."

Beren: "It gave me time to understand the boundary between the personal and the public. I learned how to convert something personal into a public (international) form. Sometimes, even if your target audience has not experienced the topics or concepts you are approaching, they internalise and personalise it in their own way, thus creating a shared value. I realised that even small details have a big impact on projects. Although I am introverted, quiet and calm in my daily life, I realised that I was able to express and communicate my ideas strongly and clearly."