Activities are currently underway within the short-term networking project “Open Latitudes: Science, Heritage, and Future Arts in Relation to the Nordic Solstice”, led by the Liepāja 2027 Foundation.
The project aims to facilitate interdisciplinary knowledge exchange and collaboration exploring the relationship between people and the sun. It forms part of the “Nordic Solstice” programme within Liepāja 2027 and offers an opportunity to examine the theme of the solstice through the lenses of literature, science, and the arts.
The lead partner of the project is the Liepāja 2027 Foundation. Project partners include Pikene på Brøn, a curatorial and production collective based in Kirkenes, Norway, and Imagining Godzilla (MEET Factory Oy), an experimental arts platform from Finland. Associate partners include the Science and Education Innovation Centre (ZIIC) from Liepāja, the Finnish network AvoinGLAM, and the French online platform Makery. The project is curated by Finnish producer and researcher Andrew Gryf Paterson.
The network will facilitate a series of online meetings between project partners and invited experts, alongside two in-person gatherings in Oulu and Liepāja. Through these exchanges, participants will develop ideas and concepts for inclusion in the “Nordic Solstice” programme of Liepāja 2027 in 2027. In addition, the project will produce an open-source mitten pattern design inspired by the project’s themes.
The project is supported by the Nordic Culture Point through its Short-Term Network Funding programme. The total project budget is EUR 27,850, of which EUR 19,000 is provided by Nordic Culture Point.
The project runs from 1 April 2026 to 1 April 2027.
From 29 September to 1 October, representatives of Liepāja 2027 took part in an ECOC Echo project partner meeting in Chemnitz, Germany.
On October 9, 2026, in Liepāja, as part of the “Liepāja – European Capital of Culture 2027” programme, an open-air photography exhibition titled “One Day in Liepāja 1987–2007 – 2025,” which, through images taken in three different years, will reveal the life of the city and its people over the course of half a century.
On Wednesday, 30 September, the Liepāja – European Capital of Culture 2027 Supervisory Board held its latest meeting, during which Board members were updated on progress to date, the implementation of the programme and preparations for the key events of 2027. Particular attention was given to the opening programme for the European Capital of Culture year in January.