Discover Latvia, 1999, video, 13 min.

The video Discover Latvia intends to reflect the current situation by giving its point of view about the human condition in contemporary Latvia and in post-communist Eastern Europe in general. Although the film seems to emphasise the national aspect, the depicted context goes further than the borders of one country or ethnic group. Agnese Bule uses a system of images and symbols familiar to the European mentality to develop the myth of the origin of the Latvian nation: the tree of the world, the creation of man, a barrel, a flag and a river. The 'reality' of ancient myths is linked to modern-day myths that live on in current Latvian public opinion. The film's plot is based on the above Latvian origin myth, its history and its present life as recreated by the artist. It starts with prehistoric scenes and leads the spectator towards modern-day Latvia, where the action continues. Symbolically, we go through important recent historical events connected with the regaining of Latvian independence, and the film reflects the present situation after almost a decade of autonomy.