Exhibition “100 Years of the Archives of Latvian Folklore”

On September 24, the photo exhibition “100 Years of the Archives of Latvian Folklore” opened at the Estonian Folklore Archives (Eesti Rahvaluule Arhiiv), a division of the Estonian Literary Museum (Eesti Kirjandusmuuseum). The exhibition was presented by its creator, Aigars Lielbārdis, leading researcher at the Archives of Latvian Folklore (LFK). It features 24 photographs from various LFK collections, offering an insight into the 100-year history of the Archives.

The history of LFK has largely been shaped by its staff and their research interests, which have influenced both the volume and classification of preserved folklore materials, as well as the nature of published folklore studies, text compilations, and collections. Through their daily work — recording, audio-taping, cataloguing, describing, systematizing, and today digitizing folklore materials — the staff have ensured the existence and growth of the Archives over the past century.

At the heart of the exhibition are LFK employees across different periods — beginning with the interwar years, followed by the Soviet occupation, and concluding with images from the period of the Atmoda (Awakening) in the 1980s. As photography in the 20th century was not commonplace, it usually took place on special occasions and in the presence of notable individuals, most often when a researcher met with an informant — that is, at the moment of performing folklore. Folklore recording typically happened during individual or joint expeditions and fieldwork organized by the entire Archives, sometimes involving a professional photographer.

The exhibition includes images showing tradition-bearers together with folklore researchers and technical staff from different generations, as well as various methods and conditions of documenting folklore.

Photo © Aigars Lielbārdis