From the water: vanishing ways of life captured in pictures

An artist talk by Berta Tilmantaitė, known for her photographic and journalistic works and travels, will be held at the Park department of the Kaunas City Council Library (60 P. Lukšio street). Berta Tilmantaitė is one of the artists selected for this year’s KAUNAS PHOTO festival. Her works will be exhibited in one of the festival’s outdoor spaces: the Chechnya square.

KAUNAS PHOTO festival, this year exploring the theme of water, was particularly drawn to Berta Tilmantaitė’s works from her travels in South America, Africa and Asia. She documents diverse communities around the planet, commenting on the issues of ecology and conservation. During the event, Berta Tilmantaitė will present her works and will share her experience of joining the sea nomad tribes in Malaysia, observing the Yongding river in Beijing, China and visiting the endangered lake Victoria in Africa. Those attending the talk will also hear about the wider narrative of the Chechnya square exhibition, that starts at the end of June.

“The best way to start a dialogue is to meet your audiences live. No matter how impressive and informative the photographs are, real conversation and discussion only adds to the meaning. During the artist talk I will tell the stories behind my pictures in the Chechnya square, and will also touch upon other themes. I will share the wider context and circumstances of each work, as well as the process of searching for new stories, the creative process. We are all affected by the climate change, pollution and other ecological risks, and it doesn’t differ much whether you are in Borneo jungle, or on the coast of Peru, fishing in the lake Victoria, or here in Kaunas, Lithuania.“ said Berta Tilmantaitė.

Berta Tilmantaitė is a Lithuanian multimedia journalist, photographer and videographer. Her stories focus on social issues, human rights, environment and connection between human and nature. Berta studied at Vilnius University, the Danish School of Media and  at the University of Bolton/Beijing Foreign Studies University. She is a co-founder of first and only Lithuanian multimedia platform for documentary stories called Nanook.  Berta’s work was published in various media outlets around the world, including National Geographic, GEO, Al Jazeera, Wired and others. She has won awards in international contests and festivals, such as Sony World Photography Awards, LUMIX Festival for Young Photojournalism, Lithuanian Press Photography Awards and others.

KAUNAS PHOTO is the longest- running annual photography festival in Lithuania and the Baltic States. It is organised by the NGO „Šviesos raštas“ since 2004. KAUNAS PHOTO is one of the most important annual art events in the country. KAUNAS PHOTO is a member of Festival Of Light organisation and works with the Federation of European Photographers.

Main sponsors: Lithuanian Culture Cuncil, Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania, Kaunas city council.

Patron of the festival is President Valdas Adamkus.