VILNIS AUZINS
Born in Riga, Latvia, on January 8, 1948. Resides in Riga, Latvia

Education
1955-1966 Riga High School No. 1
1968 Beginning of a photographer's career
1970-1971 Art Academy of Latvia, design courses
1977-1982 Moscow Institute of Culture, correspondence course in art direction and photo-cinema edition
1991 Art Academy of Latvia, lecture course "Photography" by Boris Mangolds (USA)
1993 Baltic Sea Folk High School, lecture course " Democracy and Culture", Aabenraa, Denmark

Post-graduate education
1995 studies in Japan, supported by the Japanese Foundation
studies in the USA as a National Endowment for the Arts - Arts Link fellow

Solo exhibitions
Since 1988- 27 solo exhibitions
1988 "Presence of Light", gallery "Ezerciems", Riga, Latvia
1990 "Buildings of the Architect V.Bockslaff", House of Architects, Riga, Latvia
1992 "In Latvia", gallery "Fotostudija-1", Boston, USA
1992 "Dwellings and Dwellers", City Exhibition Hall, Higashikawa, Japan
1992 "Dwellings and Dwellers", Baltic Sea Folk High School, Aabenraa, Denmark
1994 "Yard", Menczendorff's House, Riga, Latvia
1994 "Touches of Light", gallery "Triptych", Kiev, Ukraine
1997 "Japan - A Light Touch", salon - shop "Monte Cristo - Coffee Republic", Riga, Latvia
1997 "A Few Seconds In Latvia", library - gallery "Vecriga", Riga, Latvia
1997 "Travel Notes - Denmark", cinema cafe "Andaluzijas suns", Riga, Latvia
1997 "A Visit to the Earth", Latvian Museum of Photography, Riga, Latvia
1995 -1998 several exhibitions on architecture "Riga - Art Nouveau Heritage":
Nordic Culture Centre in Stockholm, Sweden
Embassy of the Republic of Latvia in Kiev, Ukraine
The House of Parliament of the Republic of Latvia, Riga
UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France
Swedish Culture Center in Paris, France
Embassy of Latvia in Moscow, Russia
1st Exhibition of Professional Photography, Riga, Latvia
Aalesunds Museum, Aalesund, Norway

Group exhibitions
Since 1979 participated in 50 group exhibitions
1986 "City", House of Architects, Riga, Latvia
1986 "Latvian Photography", St. Peter's Church-Museum, Riga, Latvia
1986 "Setting Birds Free", Valmiera Museum for History and Arts, Valmiera, Latvia
1989 "One Day in Ogre", Ogre Museum for History and Arts, Ogre, Latvia
1989 "Latvian Photography ", St.Peter's Church-Museum, Riga, Latvia
1989 "Dedication", Sports Palace, Riga, Latvia
1989 "Latvia's Time", Modern Art Museum "Arsenāls", Riga, Latvia
1991 "Comrades & Cameras", Santa Barbara Art Museum, Santa Barbara, USA
1991 "Evidence", gallery "M-6", Riga, Latvia
1992 "Latvian Contemporary Photography", gallery "Fotostudija 1", Boston, USA
1993 "Photographers from Latvia", City Exhibition Hall, Higashikawa, Japan
1995 "50 Years of Struggle For Freedom", State History Centre, Adelaide, Australia
1995 "Latvian Contemporary Art", Gallery "International Images" Sewickley, USA
1995 "Architectural Motifs", Gallery "Fotostudija 1", Boston, USA
1996 "Latvia's Time", Art Museum "ARSENALS", Riga, Latvia
1997 "Ballet", contemporary art exhibition, Riga Stock Exchange, Riga, Latvia
1997 "Photography from Latvia", "Fotogalerie Wien", Vienna, Austria
1997 "Photography from Latvia", gallery "FotoFokus West", Innsbruck, Austria
1997 "Latvian Contemporary Photography", Photography Museum, Siauliai, Lithuania
1998 "Living Space", Art Gallery, Latvian Atrists Society, Riga, Latvia

Participation in workshops, photoprojects and photo campaigns
1985 Workshop "Fotovasara 85", Culture palace "Ziemeļblāzma", Riga, Latvia
1987 - 1996 Workshop "Fotovasara 87", M.Buclers Photography Room, Sauka, Latvia
1987 Photo campaign "One Day in Latvia", Riga, Latvia
1988 Photo campaign "One Day in Ogre", photo club "Ogre", Ogre, Latvia
1989 Photo campaign "Riga at Night", Photo club "VEF", Riga, Latvia
1989 Photo project "Latvia's Time", Latvia
1990 Photo campaign "City", Photo club "VEF", Riga, Latvia
1991 Photo campaign "Vidzeme outskirts of Riga", Photo club "VEF", Riga, Latvia
1996 - 1998 Photo project "Living Space", Latvia - Austria
1996 - 1998 Art Festival "Nord - West" , Moscow, Russia
Collections
Latvian Museum of Photography, Riga, Latvia
Higashikawa City Council, Japan
Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography, Tokyo, Japan
Santa Barbara Museum of Art, California, USA
Ethnographic Open-Air Museum of Latvia, Riga, Latvia
Private collections in Latvia, the United States, Japan, Sweden, Austria, Lithuania, Russia, Poland, Norway

Curatorial experience
Since 1979 Curator of above 100 exhibitions
Since 1989 Photo project "Latvia's Time", Latvia
1996 - 1998 Photo project "Living Space", Latvia - Austria
1997 - 1998 Art Festival "Nord - West" , Moscow, Russia

Participation in conferences and seminars
Since 1987 -above 20 conferences and seminars in Latvia, Lithuania, Germany, Poland, Austria, Denmark, Japan, the United States, Slovakia
1987 1st scientific seminar "Photography - a phenomenon of visual culture", Latvian State University, Riga
1990 2nd scientific seminar "Photography - a phenomenon of visual culture", Latvian State University,
Speech: "The place of photography in present-day Latvian culture and national economy"
1993 "1st Central European AV-Media Congress", Graz, Austria
Speech: "Storage of Photographic Collections"
1993 3rd scientific seminar "Photography - a phenomenon of visual culture", Latvian Museum of Photography, Riga
Speech: "Photography Storage in the Latvian Photography Museum"
1994 "AVICOM 94: Photography and Museum", Bonn, Germany Speech: "Photo Collections in Latvia"
1995 "Higashikawa Photo Festival", Higashikawa, Japan
Speech: "The Role of Photography in the Preservation and Creation of National Culture in Latvia"
1996 4th scientific seminar "Photography - a phenomenon of visual culture", Latvian Museum of Photography, Riga
Speech: "Experience of the Latvian Museum of Photography in Cooperating with International Organizations"
1996 Symposium "The Art of Today", Bratislava, Slovakia
Speech: "The Role of Photography in Latvian Culture"
1997 International discussion "Photography: yesterday and today", St. Petersburg, Russia
Speech: "Latvian Photography: the Second Half of the 20th Century"

Affiliations
1986 Photo club "VEF"
1988 Latvian Culture Foundation, Riga, coordinator of photo projects
1989 Latvian Designers Society
Since 1992 Latvian National Commission for UNESCO , photography expert
Since 1996 Association of the Professional Photographers of Latvia

© Latvian Museum of Photography
Compiled by Vilnis Auziņš
Translation from Latvian: Andra Piebalga
Computer print: Andra Piebalga
September 21, 1998