Baltic Estates

This project in Latvia marked an important step in my practice, as it was the first time I used a drone to frame the opening image.

Having only recently started working with aerial photography, I approached it as an exploration of light, geometry and perspective. From above, the symmetry of palaces and landscaped parks becomes more apparent, revealing patterns that remain partially hidden at ground level.

The assignment led me to several Latvian estates I had never visited before. Stāmeriena Palace, in particular, carries an unexpected connection to Italian literary history. It was once home to Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, who married Alexandra von Wolff-Stomersee, a Russian-Italian psychoanalyst.

Family dynamics, however, rarely respect geography. It is said that Alexandra was not especially fond of her Sicilian mother-in-law, and therefore preferred the quiet of Latvia to extended stays on the island. Whatever the domestic diplomacy involved, the result is a fascinating cultural intersection between Sicily and the Baltic countryside.

The story ultimately became both a technical exploration and a rediscovery — of architecture, of perspective, and of histories that travel further than one might expect.