Guide for Foreigners. Phrases of Misunderstanding

The series Guide for Foreigners highlights the importance of communication focusing especially on a multicultural context. Because of our cultural background we have/own traditions, habits and thoughts that does not only affect our life but also the way we perceive the world. When it comes to understanding someone else, we often fall into misconceptions and misunderstand each other because of these differences. However misunderstanding is not necessarily bad. Once we realize the situation a possibility is given to understand each other better and learn about the other person and their culture.

My series interprets idioms that express miscommunication and the leak of understanding, taking the chance to compare twenty-one different languages and cultures, the symbols and stereotypes we connect to them. By visualizing national phrases I aim to show that everything can be funny and strange in a new context, translated to another language. With my project I want to encourage people to learn about different cultures and overcome cultural barriers by proper communication.

Liza Szabó (1992) is a Hungarian photographer based in The Hague, the Netherlands, where she recently graduated from the Royal Academy of Arts. Her series will be shown tonight at fon Stricka villa in Riga as part of the the projection of shortlisted work from Riga Photomonth’s open call under the theme Facts and Clarifications.