🎤 Art Centre Zuzeum invites you to a lecture by Gustavs Grasis, an expert in Latvian modern and postmodern architecture. Gustavs will delve into the inspiration behind the now-closed exhibition ‘Straight, No Chaser’ and share behind-the-scenes insights. Even if you missed the exhibition, this lecture offers a unique chance to explore the hidden layers of Riga’s architectural history and discover how past and present collide in the city’s urban landscape.
📅 Thursday, September 12, at 17:30–19:00
🎟️ Free admission with prior registration.
🗣️ The lecture will be held in English.
The exhibition ‘Straight, No Chaser’ was a reflection of the research group La Méditerranée on the Zuzāns Collection, Riga’s cultural heritage, and their interaction with contemporary art both in Latvia and abroad.
La Méditerranée, an exhibition-oriented research group from Paris, compares itself to a jazz ensemble that approaches exhibitions as mutually complementary situations where a unity of time and place emerges. What form would such interplay take in the cultural context of Riga? When La Méditerranée was introduced to Riga in March 2024, an interpretation of this theme in the form of an expedition was offered by architectural researcher Gustavs Grasis.
In the lecture “Thinking About That Time When We Walked from the Hotel ‘Latvija’ to St. Peter’s Church,” Gustavs will provide an opportunity to glimpse behind the scenes of this multifaceted expedition, whose contextual framework was inspired by the depictions of 1970s Riga by architect and photographer Laimonis Stīpnieks (1936–2023), creating an impression of a city where all eras coexist simultaneously.
Gustavs Grasis is a photographer, practitioner, and researcher of architecture with a passion for nurturing relationships with overlooked spatial heritage. As a member of the Baltic Lines artistic research group, Gustavs is currently contributing an exploration of fiberglass design and environmental entanglement in 1980s Latvia, and his work will be exhibited at the Baltic Lines group show in October at “InTheCloset” gallery in Vilnius.
*By attending the event, you agree to take and use photos and videos for publicity purposes. You have the right to object to being photographed or filmed or to have your child photographed or filmed by notifying the photographer or videographer during the event.