The artists nominated by
ISSP is a platform for contemporary photography, based in Latvia and acting internationally. As an organisation we offer highest-quality education and networking programmes for photographers, organise exhibition and events, and create new ways to promote the cross-border exchange of ideas in the art of photography.
Since its establishment in 2006, ISSP has hosted annual editions of its International Summer School of Photography, initiated education and exchange programmes and projects, curated a number of exhibitions and publications, established a contemporary photography education programme in Latvia, and, most importantly, gathered a thriving community of young photographers in Latvia and beyond – our students and tutors come from over 30 countries around the world. In 2018, we launched the ISSP Gallery - a new exhibition and events space for contemporary photography in Riga.
As a new member of the Futures platform, we felt obliged to represent artists from the Baltic region and broader Eastern region. The selection process drew on the broad collaborative networks developed through various ISSP programs, allowing us to select some of the most unique and active artists in the region. We hope that their involvement with the FUTURES platform will provide each other with opportunities for further collaborations, as well as the recognition they deserve.
The selection of artists - comprising Kristina Õllek, Kristīne Krauze-Slucka, Sergey Melnitchenko, Vika Eksta and Konstantin Zhukov - encompasses diverse approaches to the medium of photography in terms of form and technique. Their practice ranges from documentary to camera-less photography, though they share a passion for exploring relevant social themes; the selected projects mirror the social, economical and ecological phenomena to which we are all subjected today. We firmly believe that these artists will contribute to the artistic community of FUTURES with the rich diversity of their approaches.
Konstantin Zhukov (1990) lives and works between Riga and London. After graduating from Riga Secondary School of Design and Art, Zhukov continued his studies at Central Saint Martins and London College of Communication in the United Kingdom.
He has participated in exhibitions and book art fairs including Paris Ass Book Fair at Palais de Tokyo in Paris, Strange Perfume at South London Gallery, Queer Frontiers by Artiq and Pride in London, Riga Photography Biennale: NEXT 2021 and Riga Photomonth. Most recently, Zhukov has opened a solo show Black Carnation part 2 at ISPP gallery in Riga and is preparing to take part in the fourth edition of Paris Ass Book Fair at Lafayette Anticipations in Paris.
Konstantin’s work has been published internationally both online and in print in such publications as i-D, CAP74024 and Arterritory. His work "An essay on self-confidence and homoerotic Islamic poetry”, originally published in Jezga magazine Vol. 2, was translated into Russian and published on Открытые (o-zine.ru) – a pioneering LGBTQ+ publication based in Moscow.
Kristina Õllek (b.1989, Estonia) is a visual artist who lives and works in Tallinn, Estonia. She is working in the field of photography, video and installation, with a focus on investigating representational processes, geological and ecological matter, and the human-made environment. In her practice she frequently uses situations when fact and fiction, synthetic and natural, copy and original intertwine with each other and become a hybrid object / matter to obtain new and reconsidered meaning.
Her works are often site-sensitive, analysing the exhibition location and format, questioning modes of presentation and installation politics, viewing it from different perspectives — from a historical museum to online space.
Kristina Õllek has graduated from Estonian Academy of Arts (BA degree in 2013, MA degree in 2016; at the Photography Department, Fine Arts). She has also studied at Piet Zwart Institute in Rotterdam (2016) and Kunsthochschule Berlin-Weissensee (2012). She’s been the laureate of the Estonian Academy of Arts Young Artist Prize 2013 (BA) and 2016 (MA). In 2019 she received the Art Proof Production Grant. Her works have recently been shown in various international group and solo exhibitions in Estonia and abroad. Her works can be found in private and public collections.
Sergey Melnitchenko was born in 1991 in Mykolayiv, Ukraine. Started photography in 2009. In 2018 – founder of school of conceptual and art photography MYPH. Member of UPHA – Ukrainian Photo Alternative. In recent years, he has participated in more than 100 solo and group exhibitions around the world. Winner of Ukrainian and international contests including “Leica Oskar Barnack Award Newcomer” in 2017 (Berlin), “Photographer of the Year” in 2012, 2013 and 2016 (Kyiv, Ukraine), “Golden Camera” in 2012 (Kyiv, Ukraine). Shortlisted for Krakow Photomonth in 2013 and Pinchuk Art Center Prize in 2015, among others. Participant of “Paris Photo”, “Volta Art Fair”, “Photo L.A.”, Photo Basel, etc. Nominated on “Foam Paul Huf Award” in 2020. Sergey’s works are in private and public collections in USA, Hong Kong, Ukraine, Russia, Poland, France, Germany, Belgium, Lithuania and Czech Republic.
Vika Eksta (1987) is an artist based in Riga, Latvia. In her long-term projects, Vika combines the documentary and fictional. Most of her work reflects upon the artist's personal experiences - be it an exploration of a fictional identity or of a Latvian rural landscape. Vika's choice of medium depends on the idea of the project. She is skilled in photography, analogue photo lab work, performance for the camera and audiovisual archive research. Vika is the winner of the ADC Young Guns, FK Portfolio and Riga Photography Biennial awards for young Baltic photographers, and has been nominated for the Purvītis Prize. Since 2014, she has participated in exhibitions in Latvia and abroad, including at the Latvian National Museum of Art (2020, 2022), kim? Contemporary Art Centre (2019), Gallery Alma (2019, 2021), ISSP Gallery (2018), Kaunas Photography Gallery (2017) and many various festivals. Her work is held in the collections of Latvian National Museum of Art, Latvian Museum of photography and private collections.
