Co-curated by Alicia Knock and Inga Lāce.
For the 14th editions of both Kaunas Biennial (Lithuania) and of Contemporary Art Festival Survival Kit (Latvia), co-curators Alicia Knock and Inga Lāce gather almost 40 artists across two cities to present Long-distance Friendships. These sister exhibitions, which open August 25 in Kaunas and September 7 in Riga invite visitors to engage with stories of transnational solidarity, resistance and resilience, from post-socialist and post-colonial world where microhistories of friendships become a starting point for contemporary alliances.
Long-distance Friendships will invest in defunct infrastructures providing opportunities for reimagining them in the present. What new kinds of transactions might be supported, whether based on exchange and gifting or on fragmentation and impossibility? Knock and Lāce have chosen to engage with contemporary artists with strong ties to Africa and Eastern Europe, across diaspora and within open-ended research paths.
Co-curators Knock and Lāce elaborate:
“This project attempts to connect distant histories that are linked more closely than many are aware of. Our choice of venues is not a coincidence. The old central post office in Kaunas and the market in Riga are both collapsed spaces for exchange and togetherness, built on personal histories. In a time of geopolitical fragmentation, it is important to strive for international alliances that are forged through collaboration rather than power dynamics.
