At the Saeima on Friday, 3 October, an international jury decided to award this year's Baltic Assembly (BA) Prize in the arts to Latvian conductor Kaspars Putniņš for his performance with the Latvian Radio Choir in the concert program Stream of Dreams ("Sapņu straume"), which took place on 31 March 2023 during the Baltic Music Days in the Great Hall of the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music in Riga.
The jury chose to award the Baltic Assembly (BA) Prize in Literature to Lithuanian poet, literary critic, and translator Tomas Venclova for his latest book of poetry Beyond St. Anne’s and the Bernardines (“Už Onos ir Bernardinų").
The BA Prize in Science will be awarded to Eva Piirimäe, Professor of Political Theory at the University of Tartu, who had been nominated for her monograph Herder and Enlightenment Politics.
Each BA Prize is a monetary award of €5,000 and will be presented at the annual Session of the Baltic Assembly on 13 November this year in Riga.
The jury consisted of nine experts in literature, the arts, and science from Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania. Latvia was represented on the jury by Dace Bluķe, Ieva Kolmane, and Maija Kūle.
Alongside the winners, this year’s Baltic Assembly Prize had the following nominees:
In Literature:
- Latvian poets Kārlis Vērdiņš and Valts Ernštreits for their collection of poems Livonian Ballads (“Lībiešu balādes / Līvõd balādõd”);
- Estonian writer and art historian Lilli Luuk for her novel Night Mother (“Ööema”);
In the Arts:
- Latvian photographer Diāna Tamane for her active and multifaceted creative work, as well as for her highly acclaimed and comprehensive exhibition Half-Love (“Pusmīla”);
- one of Europe's leading tenors Edgaras Montvidas of Lithuania, for the elegance of his voice, the depth of his interpretation and his commitment to the highest artistic standards, as well as for his contribution to cultural life in the Baltic Sea region; for his many active years as a bridge between local heritage and the world stage, as well as for his work that not only reflects personal excellence, but also a deep commitment to preserving and promoting Baltic identity through art;
In Science:
- Lithuanian professor Ramunė Marcinkevičiūtė, Tallinn University researcher Maris Peters, and Dr. art. Guna Zeltiņa of Latvia for their jointly written monograph Shakespeare’s Reception and Interpretation in the Baltics;
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Zenonas Norkus, a leading Lithuanian researcher in the field of comparative historical sociology, for two scientific monographs: The Great Restoration: Post-Communist Transformations from the Viewpoint of Comparative Historical Sociology of Restorations, and Post-Communist Transformations in the Baltic Countries: A Restorations Approach in Comparative Historical Sociology.
The Baltic Assembly Prize was established in 1994 and has been awarded to many well-known figures in the fields of culture, science, and the arts.
Last year, the BA Prize in the Arts was awarded to Latvian film director Dāvis Sīmanis for his internationally acclaimed feature film Maria's Silence (“Marijas klusums”), which won an award at the Berlin Film Festival. The BA Prize in Literature was awarded to Estonian writer and poet Rein Raud for his novel The Plague Train (“Katkurong”). The BA Prize in Science was awarded to Lithuanian scientist Limas Kupčinskas for his outstanding contribution to fundamental and clinical research, innovations in the field of digestive and liver diseases, and other professional scientific achievements.
Photos of the Baltic Assembly Prize jury committee session: https://www.flickr.com/photos/saeima/albums/72177720329418375/
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Saeima Press Service