Arts Thread

Ieva Jakusa is a multidisciplinary artist with a conceptual design, film, and artistic research background. Her multimedia installations combine video, sound, and print. Ievas' work is primarily rooted in social projects exploring traditional culture and its role in contemporary society. Originally from Latvia, where traditional practices have served as a coping mechanism for national identity through historical occupations, she reflects on the nationalistic character of the traditional culture that echoes in global right-wing politics. She has also lived in the Netherlands for eight years, where she explores the commodification of cultural symbols, such as wooden clogs, which have evolved from handcrafted tools into mass-produced tourism merchandise. Her agency lies in reclaiming traditional culture from dominant power structures and transforming it into a raw material, open to interpretation and evolution, as a force within modernity. Within her practice, Ieva invites the audience to reflect on the existing narratives regarding cultural heritage and nationalistic and capitalistic appropriation.