Elina Valaite

Currently lives and works in: Tbilisi, Georgia

Areas of interest: Art, Cultural Management, Museology, Photography, Design, Architecture, Travel, Cultural Diversity.

Why are you a part of MagiC Carpets: MC gives a great opportunity to support emerging artists and collaborate with international curators, organisations to build sustainable network that Tbilisi Photo Festival relies on.

What do you think is the purpose of art? Reflection of reality throughout critical thinking.

Past projects you are proud of (before MC)

Fabrika of Images

Position: Curator

Fabrika of Images is an educational platform for teens which offers participants the chance to reflect on the world by way of learning more about different disciplines through and with images. The initial idea was to decentralize educational and cultural programs within the PHEI project. The first three programs have been held in different regions of Georgia and the suburb of Tbilisi. During the global lockdown three online programs were specially adapted for distance learning within which we have covered the capital as well as over ten other regions, villages and cities.
Through theory-based courses and practical/online workshops, groups of teens from primary to high school are taught to understand the complexity of image issues in close association with the teaching teams, professors of different disciplines and image professionals. On-site programs contained: practical and theoretical studies on the history of photography, history of art, camera-obscura, portrait, landscape, conceptual photography followed by an exhibition of photographs done in the frame of the workshop series. Online programs contained: sessions different photographic genres (portrait, street photography, conceptual photography and collage), the development of various concepts, the creation of multimedia projects. Some practical exercises were focused on portfolio-reviews, visual storytelling, image analysis, the creative use of mobile photography and online platforms.

Multimedia Lab Production Grant Program for South Caucasian Women Photographers

Position: Coordinator

Multimedia Lab and its Production Grant Program (2018-2020) was created for emerging women photographers from Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia with precious opportunities of professional development. In the frame of the project, each grantee benefited from a 6-month-long individual online tutorial from the mentor of the grant program. Within the program, we supported the South Caucasian women photographers to produce photo stories covering social issues in the region. After finalizing the photo story/project, each participant produced the slideshow of the story/project that have become a part of PHEI online archives – i-mediatheque with international visibility and free access.

Contact information

Email: [email protected]