Untitled [Baltic]
Digital Photography
2022

Drawing formal inspiration from Cindy Sherman’s 1977-1980 Untitled Film Stills, the project is fuelled by curiosity in the common thread across the diverse personas one can adopt in spite of their “everyday” identity.

As an expatriate from Lithuania, I always shied away from identifying as a Lithuanian. I succeeded in distancing myself from the stereotypes surrounding Balts and the constraints of my upbringing - religiousness, reticence, shyness of sexuality and sensuality. In time, I developed an interest in the subliminal heritage of my culture.

Lithuania has one of the highest suicide death rates in the world – for many years it was considered to be the highest in all of Europe (Voxeu.org). As I consider the cultural heritage and social conditioning present within my body, I also encounter the national lineage of mental illness.

The self-portrait series is an attempt to explore how undermined generational mental illness may manifest in individual lives.