Public Talks & Workshops

At New East, we believe that art is more than expression — it is a tool for dialogue, participation, and reflection. Across our space in Daugavpils and through international partnerships, we regularly host public talks, workshops, and creative learning events that engage communities in meaningful ways.

Our formats are diverse — from curated lectures and hands-on workshops to film screenings and collaborative installations. Highlights include:

• “Architecture and Propaganda” — exploring how Soviet-era city planning continues to shape our urban experience today.

• “Design and Propaganda” — tracing how visual culture has been used for manipulation, from 20th-century regimes to contemporary disinformation campaigns.

• Film Therapy Sessions — using cinema as a medium to explore difficult emotions and pressing social issues.

• Clay and Conversation — intergenerational workshops with seniors at a pottery center, reflecting on media literacy and memory through craft.

• Youth Sculpture Labs — hands-on art workshops with teenagers, turning invisible issues like loneliness, anxiety, and uncertainty into tangible forms.

• Conversation Art — a safe and playful method where refugee and local children explore emotions through dialogue around classical and contemporary artworks.

• “Cities of the Future” — co-creative games and speculative design exercises with children, imagining inclusive and sustainable urban life.

Each gathering is shaped by its participants. We create space for shared learning, listening, and imagination — especially in contexts where public discussion is limited, trust is fragile, or voices are often unheard.

Our approach combines artistic practice, critical pedagogy, and community building. The result is a series of cultural encounters that are as thought-provoking as they are empowering.