The Exploration of Invisible People by Leigh Reke
My 5 year long project, which started in 2011, examines post-soviet, XXI century individuals, LGBTQ community members and freethinkers in the conservative society of Lithuania’s capital city Vilnius. Leigh Reke
People, who often come from troubled families, are suffering because of genderism, extreme homophobia, transphobia and persecution. They tend to live a secret life and eventually become the invisible, unseen and ignored part of the society. The aim of this project is to make them visible, to provide the curious member of the public a look, to fight towards accepting the reality and call for a change.
The project ended on June 2016. Part of it was previously published in Vilnius and Kaunas as collaborative exhibitions with other social-themed authors.
I’m a Lithuanian born professional fine art-photographer, living in Scotland, who’s always using analogue photography processes, materials and vintage technology. I’m passionate about traditional fine-art photography and always seek to make it contemporary again.
Being part of the LGBTQ community, I dedicate a huge part of my creative works to my personal way of activism, revealing equality issues, encouraging one to speak for their rights and providing visibility for often invisible and unseen vulnerable individuals.