ЛАВ = LOVE

It is possible to collect almost anything: from onions and butterflies to tanks and airplanes; from lutes and zithers to coins and badges; from stamps, chewing gum wrappers, and tin soldiers to paintings, graphics, and sculptures. Many types of collecting have earned respect, and even their own names (philately, numismatics, notaphily, phillumeny, and phaleristics, to name but a few), largely due to their place in market relations. But most remain hobbies and continue to enrich the lives of people of all ages, nationalities, economic backgrounds, and social statuses. The exhibition ЛАВ = LOVE is largely focused on deltiology (collecting postcards), although the right terminology to describe the type of memory collecting that is currently most common and widespread, namely photographing personal moments, has yet to be found.

In the last few years, the isolation that followed the restrictions imposed as a result of the pandemic seems to have led to more than one private collection being revised. This exhibition offers a look into three private collections owned by Andrejs Strokins, Irēna Bužinska, and the Bolderājas Grupa association respectively. The collections are made up of material that was once life-affirming, but which later seemed obsolete and outdated and was thus abandoned. These are photographs, postcards, and slides that capture countless moments, memorable events, and positive emotions that once took place in some place and in someone’s life. Seen from the point of view of today, these images can be understood as multi-layered material that is open to interpretation in the construction of a new cultural memory.

Participants: Andrejs Strokins (LV), Irēna Bužinska (LV), Bolderājas Grupa (LV)
Curator: Inga Brūvere (LV)
Text: Aiga Dzalbe (LV)Image:From the collection of Andrejs Strokins: ЛАВ 74-24