Riga Photography Biennial 2020. ‘Secret meeting’ – workshop with Līga Spunde

For some time now fake news has become a mundane phenomenon. Most of us are aware of its presence and yet feel confused when confronting it.

Technically projecting reality and creating ostensibly an indubitable depiction of reality, photography replaced painting in the past. It has frequently served as immediate evidence of crime, historical events and identity. And yet image has never been as visible and popular as today. Its use and accessibility have rapidly grown, particularly since 1999 when the first mobile phone with a built-in camera was developed in Japan. It is not a coincidence that these 20 years since have seen photography evolve from a specialist profession into one of the most popular pastimes and effective marketing tools. However, with the huge demand for photography, the role of image and responsibility for depiction of reality have also changed.

Image manipulation options have never been so easily accessible, exact and hard to separate from the original. What’s wrong with a little rosiness of cheeks appearing in a tired-looking face? But what about images purposefully manipulated to use in whistleblowing and skewing public opinion on a global political level?

The workshop offers an opportunity to fabricate your own fictitious situation, exploring techniques and methods of image and information manipulation. Using various combinations of photo prints, each member will develop his/her own scenario of a secret meeting, acquiring experience that calls for awareness of the subjectivity of visual information and critical evaluation of the content of visual information encountered on a daily base.

Language: Latvian, Participation fee - 2,50 EUR. Participation only with prior application.

Riga Photography Biennial 2020 programme: www.rpbiennial.com 

Participant: Līga Spunde (LV)
Curator: Elīna Ķempele (LV)
Organizer: Riga Photography Biennial 
Image: Līga Spunde. "Secret meeting # 1", 2020

Partners and supporters: State Culture Capital Foundation, Riga City Council, Association of Culture Institutions of Riga City Council, Exhibition hall ‘Riga Art Space’, Printing house ‘ADverts’, Arterritory, LSM, Satori, Punctum, Newspaper IR, Literatūra ir menas (LT), Latvijas Radio, Radio NABA