The exhibition "Realists" invites to explore early Latvian women's writing

From September 4, the Latvian National Library will host an exhibition entitled "Realists: Latvian Women Writers in the Long 19th Century." It has been compiled by literary scholars from the University of Latvia's Institute of Literature, Folklore and Art to highlight the diversity of early Latvian women's writing.

The thematic exhibition will provide an insight into the prose works of eight Latvian women writers from the late 19th and early 20th centuries: Marija Medinska-Valdemāre, Minna Freimane, Hermīne Zālīte, Birznieku Latiņa, Birznieku Sofija, Tirzmaliete, Emīlija Prūsa, and Anna Brigadere. The selection of works was compiled by literary scholars Zita Kārkla, a researcher of women's writing, and Pauls Daija, a researcher of the Enlightenment period, while the design was created by Grieta Vītoliņa.

"The canon of Latvian realism has so far been largely shaped by male authors, so this anthology was created with the desire to see what is happening in women's writing at this time and what new aspects female writers are bringing to it. Research into this period is particularly important because relatively little is known about it. Often, when talking about women's writing in the early 20th century, only two names are mentioned—Aspazija and Anna Brigadere—while the voices of other authors remain in the shadows," emphasizes Zita Kārkla.

All interested parties are invited to the opening of the exhibition, which will take place on 9 September at 5 p.m. The event will begin with a discussion on early Latvian women's writing, featuring literary scholars Pauls Daija, Zita Kārkla, Eva Eglāja-Kristsone and Ilva Skulte.

As the exhibition draws to a close, there will be a discussion on the role of women in the tradition of realism and its development today on 13 November, featuring contemporary Latvian realist writers Andra Manfelde and Daina Tabūna.

The collection "Realists: Latvian Women Writers in the Long 19th Century" will be on display from 4 September to 22 November in the "World of Rarities" exhibition hall on the 5th floor of the National Library of Latvia.

The collection was compiled as part of a project funded by the Latvian Council of Science and implemented by the Institute of Literature, Folklore and Art at the University of Latvia. Entitled 'Recovering Latvian Realism: Literary Innovations as a Search for Identity' (LZP-2024/1-0341). The project focused on the voices of authors in the history of Latvian literature that have not yet been sufficiently researched.