Emilija Visockaitė, "We should start a new press era" 2015-07-08
Emilija Visockaitė is a representative of younger generation, actively participating in a cultural field and currently working in the Literatūra ir Menas (Literature and Art) magazine. We talked with Emilija about the situation of today's cultural press and the accents describing her own generation and personal experiences.
Short prose trolleybus journey 2015-07-03
Anthology Trolleybus Stories (Trolleybus Stories, 2014, Kaunas: Kitos Knygos publishing house) has indeed reached its goal - it exposed the myth that short Lithuanian prose is lyrical and provincial and that writers are poor storytellers. The travel itinerary composed of fifteen short stories, helped to make sure that Lithuanian literature can be urban, intriguing and full of humor and imagination.
Discovering my and your Vilnius 2015-06-23
Although it is stated in the website of the book of Justinas Žilinskas “My Vilnius” that it is dedicated to elder children and teenagers, the author does not agree and assures that it may be enjoyed by grown-ups (not necessarily from Vilnius) too. It is a story about children Aistė and Simas discovering Vilnius along with the mysterious Chronicler. The book offers interesting graphical solutions and illustrations and, of course, history of Vilnius.
Sound of angelic and demon-like existence 2015-06-22
The poet, essayist, literature critic and translator, winner of the National Culture and Art Prize Kęstutis Navakas issued the fruit of his six years work, the selection of essays “Soundless Ring” (Begarsis Skambutis, Vilnius, Tyto Alba publishing house) this year. It is the sixteenth book of the writer. The selection of essays is analysed in the article.
A. Jakučiūnas, „It may be that literature teaches one not to read“ 2015-06-08
Prose writer Andrius Jakučiūnas says, "Probably there had never been anything better said than the banality that an author should write about what is interesting and important to him. And whether his works will be interesting to others and if it matches the so-called spirit of the epoch is simply a coincidence, a fate."
"Poetry Spring" beech and an old cat with a few teeth 2015-06-01
It so happened that after coming home from all the events of the "Poetry Spring" in Kaunas the only texts that attracted were from a section "Pets." For example, about an old cat, which has only several teeth left, unsterilized, in search for home, but without big hopes of finding one...
Orientalism in painting - Turkish fashion conquers Europe (part 1) 2015-05-26
Term orientalism in literature describes the culture common to the Middle and Near East and South Asia, which Europe tries to mimic. In the series of articles Marius Vyšniauskas presents the influence of orientalism to the art of Western and Lithuanian art.
Arvydas Žalpys, "I am all for contemporary expositions" 2015-05-25
Works presented in the exhibition "Stories. The Man. (Biography Never Written)", ranging from the white empty framed sheets of paper to video documentations where creating a story that included the past and current events as well as the personal future plans. I had a conversation with Arvydas Žalpys about this exhibition, his work, influences, differences between contemporary and current art and experimentation in our current culture.
Forts "protecting" Kaunas: present and future 2015-05-20
After visiting Kaunas forts, it becomes obvious that Kaunas has a great treasure of heritage. Although Fort was not beneficial during the First World War, if fully arranged now, Kaunas could boldly appear next to European heritage. Not only famous for great interwar architecture, but also as a unique example of military history with its intriguing legends.
Marius Burokas, "In United States authors worry less" 2015-05-18
Writer and translator Marius Burokas recently visited the United States where he with several other poets presented the anthology of the latest Lithuanian poetry "How the Earth Carries Us. New Poets from Lithuania." The conversation is about the travel experiences, writers' lives overseas and local topicalities.
Life without a clock, an autobiography without dates 2015-05-11
Algimantas Mikuta is a poet who allowed himself the luxury to live without a clock. He measured and gave meaning to time not with routine working hours that turned many into slaves but with poems. In the book of selected works "I Lived without a Clock", published in 2014, poet tells the story of his life not with dates but with events, images and emotions.
Lithuanian Interior - depth, heights and reflections of life 2015-05-05
Interior architect Lina Preišegalavičienė defended her doctoral thesis in 2014 on "The interior of the interwar Lithuania: factors, forms, trends (1918-1940)." Looking at the twenty-fifth anniversary of Lithuanian independence through the point of view of interior design art historian touches upon the lifestyle characteristics - marking the turning points and drawing the curves of the change.
Search for the sign in the denuded Jorės. Egidijus Darulis painting 2015-04-20
E. Darulis painting is dominated by a consistent search for details. It is not specification - structural models and their interactions are examined and visually conveyed. His works tell a story of how the primitive forms become complex organisms.
About a miracle in the heart of Kaunas - St. Gertrude church 2015-04-02
Probably every resident of Kaunas, who rushes daily on a Liberty Avenue knows that after you go through a gateway near the Kaunas District Court building, you end up in a place that has a special aura. Surrounded with tall buildings from every side, there stands a small, patina marked church, which creates a unique atmosphere. No matter how hidden, St. Gertrude church is almost never empty. Let’s see why this place attract people so much for more than one century.
A glimpse at Raimundas Mikšys works: paintings and drawings 2015-03-30
R. Mikšys is one of the most important representatives of the Lithuanian Expressionist painting. Experience and emotion are important for the artist’s oeuvre. The spectrum of R. Mikšys abstract painting is dynamic and changing, bearing witness to the artist's creative maturity stages, the changing relationship with the environment, nature, religion and his inner world that pulsates with expression.
The impact of the Great War to the emerging Lithuanian state 2015-03-25
Legacy of the Great War in Lithuania is simply deleted, emphasizing it as a stage that led to country's independence without examining enemy armies that operated there, battles and biographies of notable personalities. Meanwhile Lithuania could boast about the imprints of European-wide celebrities, who led the country into a changed world. It is especially relevant now, since 2014 - 2018 were announced as years of the Great War.
When Kaunas is embraced by the sounds of musicals 2015-03-23
Giedrius Kuprevičius, who celebrated his birthday jubilee last year, crowns the date with festival of musicals - "Singing Theatre" that will take place on the 24th to 26th of March. I talked to G. Kuprevičius about his moods before the festival, why some of the performances are brought to Kaunas only now and what place does the musical occupy in the composers creative life.
Painter R. Gailiūnas, "I trim on the margin of the whole and its collapse" 2015-03-18
In his work painter R. Gailiūnas (1956) covers a wide variety of topics - from current affairs to Buddhism. You can sometimes get lost among the abundance of colors. Through them artist reveals the brutality, cruelty, anger and aggression of the world, but at the same time, as if from nowhere the reflections of the lighter world appear. Raimondas Gailiūnas shared his thoughts on his work, life, bullies and pipes.
Kaunas Architectural Guide - a new look at the interwar, Soviet and contemporary architecture of Kaunas 2015-03-09
The creators of the first Kaunas Architectural Guide, who met in the M. K. Čiurlionis Art Gallery to present it on the 6th of March where joking that they have met to talk about a publication which does not exist anymore. Most of the thousand copies of the published book were bought during the Vilnius Book Fair and the rest were purchased by residents of Kaunas who came to the presentation of the book on Friday.
Castles - witnesses of history: Latvian and Lithuanian situation 2015-02-27
In writing their history, Lithuania and Latvia can be proud of their breathtaking battles with the Crusaders and the Livonian Brothers of the Sword. And where the fierce battles took place, (not only) fortified castles were built inevitably. However, nowadays, after looking at these countries, we see a slightly different situation in how the castles are used and preserved.
Best Artwork of the Year exhibition: maybe we need to set some criteria? 2015-02-19
"Total freedom" provided by the initiators of the exhibition "Best Artwork of the Year", a dozen years ago, does not seem to be working. What we see at the Kaunas Picture Gallery is not a very impressive exhibition. Only very few artists are capable of showing something new. Maybe the organizers should consider proposing a some sort of direction to the exhibition?
Emotional exhibition of daily life and work of Aliutė Mečys (1943–2013) in Kaunas 2015-02-18
Very personal, painful and unbearable works of Aliutė Mečys, fortunately, were able to see the light of day; did not stay behind and did not get all dusty in the attic, or were not thrown away after the life of a lonely woman and artist had ended.
Elvyras Mykolas Andriolis - between the chains of prison and European glory 2015-02-13
Lithuanian painter and graphic artist Elvyras Mykolas Andriolis (1836-1893) did not only paint monumental paintings, he had also created artistic-looking illustrations for the most famous Lithuanian and Western European literary works. In addition, he famously participated in the 1863–1864 uprising. Second part of the article deals with this significant phase of painter's life.
European Capital of Culture - an opportunity for Kaunas to change for the better 2015-02-11
Kaunas, which has previously expressed its ambitions to become a part of UNESCO World Heritage, is preparing to claim yet another prestigious name - to become a European Capital of Culture of 2022. And while the example of Vilnius brought out not only positive associations of this name in Lithuania, the consultants who help cities prepare their candidacy for the title of the European Capital of Culture met the representatives of Kaunas cultural institutions, on Tuesday and share some very different stories - when the year of European Capital of Culture ends not only with success, but leaves a long-term benefit to the city, that does not fade with the last event's fireworks.
"Litrožis" by A. Andriuškevičius - between irony and plastic, noise and image 2015-01-28
Aleksas Andriuškevičius is an artist, a pedagogue and one of the members of the group of artists "Post Ars". Minimalism started to dominate his works since 1990. It can also be seen in his exhibition "Litrožis" open at Meno Parkas gallery in Kaunas until the 14th of February.
The rarely seen paintings by R. Staniūnienė 2015-01-27
Nothing is separate in Rasa Staniūnienė's paintings. Different colors, forms, abstract blots and various narratives come into contact in her works. One small plane accommodates the observation of a specific nitty-gritty and the general synthesis of the world.
Visiting the wooden houses of Kaunas - the authentic Žaliakalnis 2015-01-21
One of the most important objects that support the character of Žaliakalnis (Greenhill) are the authentic wooden houses. Not only are the outside elements of the wooden architecture preserved but all the environment as well - the landscaping, details of interior and exterior, traditional lifestyle.
Monument or heritage? Kaunas of the 19th century in the 21st century 2015-01-07
The author states that emphasis on the monument prevails in Kaunas while speaking on heritage questions. Still, he names the positive impulse – the attempt to receive the European Heritage Label to Kaunas modern architecture and to seek for the recognition of UNESCO. These aims encourage the public to think about heritage and to search for methods of realising our past. The idea of the city to choose culture as the needed impulse for the city is surely correct according to the author.
New year, old wheels 2014-12-29
The second premiere of the 95th season of the National Kaunas Drama Theatre embodying the slogan “History – anew!” is one more return of a play staged at the beginning of the eighth decade. While “Barbora” was staged by the director Jonas Jurašas himself for the second time, the performance “Biography: A Game” created by Vytautas Čibiras in 1974 could not be repeated by the same director. The new version of “Biography: Acting” returns the director Gintaras Varnas to NKDT and the theatre history.
Vienna and colour of Laudon 2014-12-10
Works displayed in the painting exhibition of Milda Gailiūtė “Vienna” at Kaunas Meno Parkas gallery may be divided into two groups: works created in Vienna in 2012 and works created in Lithuania in 2014. The artist was on the art residency in the capital of Austria two years ago after winning the Young Painter Prize in 2011. M. Gailiūtė lived and created for three months there; therefore, the aim of the exhibition is to show the cityscape, to reveal emotions of the artist in a foreign country, to present views and memories that arose after returning to Lithuania.
Memories – dripping rivulets of paint 2014-12-02
“I was not much into arts, I was much more interested in music, but my parents, especially mother, directed me towards art,” the painter, creator of video art, video and audio installations Eugenijus Varkulevičius-Varkalis (b. 1956) starts his personal story in this way.
Wooden Kaunas: phenomenon of Lower Šančiai 2014-12-01
Separate historical suburbs of wooden houses have been forming the face of Kaunas from the first half of the 20th century. Each suburb has the prevailing type of wooden houses determined by social conditions, cultural traditions and the urban situation of the location. While summer houses prevail in Panemunė and more modern architectural solutions and more abundant decorations may be noticed in wooden houses of Žaliakalnis, the Lower Šančiai and Vilijampolė were inhabited by workers mostly.
Names immortalised in stone 2014-11-18
The article is about tombs and memorial stelae in churches of Italy, France and Lithuania, Kaunas in particular. Speaking about Lithuania, the author regrets that we do not have such important war or cultural memorials that could equal to West Europe. Even the rulers buried in the cellars of Vilnius Cathedral are not accessible to everybody, while the number of tombs that may be seen by visitors of churches is even smaller in Kaunas.
Vanishing wooden Kaunas: houses of railwaymen 2014-11-10
As the cycle of articles on Kaunas wooden architecture is continued, attention should be paid to one exceptional example of Kaunas wooden architecture – houses of railwaymen. Objects of architecture of this type are not abundant; therefore, they should be discussed separately. The aim of this article is to reveal the history of appearance of railwaymen’s houses, their typical architectural forms, to present the usage and status.
Visiting Kaunas wooden houses: a walk in Vaidoto Street 2014-11-06
As one passes along Vaidoto Street in Panemunė, Kaunas, the eye is caught by various wooden houses built in the 20th century. These are small cottages and rather large houses of rented flats, buildings of a city inhabitant’s house type, buildings of oblong plan, outhouse buildings further from the street. Some of them have been covered in plastic lags, others have been reconstructed, still others are forlorn and falling apart.
So much vanity – everything is vanity 2014-10-27
In Brief: After such performance it becomes really clear that it does not matter which boy puts on a cap that symbolizes the crown, which one of them will take the golden microphone that depicts a scepter – nothing is going to change. We will still see how a self-absorbed king is wanking while admiring his reflection. It seems, that this is what the play intended to convey.
Stasys Žirgulis: “Life passes by while waiting” 2014-10-27
When asked about the creative ideas, the sculptor speaks in words of C. G. Jung: “It is no us who create ideas, on the contrary, they create us”. This idea of C. G. Jung decorates the interior of the art studio of the artist. In addition to creative ideas, the interview with S. Žirgulis is about life, Godot, myths, their meaning, the past and creation.
Landscape of watercolour biennial 2014-10-24
The conception chosen by the organisers of the watercolour biennial (head of the project – Eugenijus Nalevaika) was named as resonance. The laconic and rather abstract title of the exhibition “Resonance” interests and intrigues both participants of the exhibition and the organisers of the event. The most diverse technical possibilities of watercolour and the creative searches of a wide circle of artists using acrylic and oil painting techniques are presented in the 5th international watercolour biennial.
Mirror with memory 2014-10-22
The craving to capture the human being as an acting and thinking being on the surface marks the exceptional features of our species and the wish to remain immortalised in time. Perhaps this is the reason why portraitists of all times strove to reveal the internal world of the human being, to show what hides behind the face.
Impressions that remain in the film hall 2014-10-13
The fact that essential changes take place inside of the festival, that attempts are made to form its identity anew, that the organizers are getting away from the competitive fight with other main Lithuanian film festivals is most probably testified by the much shorter programme of the festival of this year: in addition to the retrospective of the Hungarian classic Jancsó and the main programme, Ukrainian films were shown. The shorter programme is not a bad phenomenon by itself, it could be the chance to raise the level of the festival. However, did the 8th festival succeed to do this?
Cuisine at dawn 2014-10-10
Promises make a good supplement to food. They may be of different consistence, colour and flavour. They may grant exceptional qualities to food and may spoil it. What does it have in common with sauce? The word sauce was used as a joke before the premiere of the performance “Promise at Dawn at Kaunas National Drama Theatre on October 4 and 5. Even the reading of the novel “Promise at Dawn” of Romain Gary did not help to forget the joke. Still, after watching the performance no thoughts about gravies remained.
Textile as painting 2014-10-06
The newest exhibition of Laimutė Kozlovienė (b. 1958) was displayed at Raudondvaris Manor in September of 2014. Before analysing the form of works, technique, internal philosophy and possibilities to picture the seen reality, it is worthwhile to get acquainted with the artist’s biography briefly.
Volunteering, virtual community and wooden houses of cities 2014-09-18
Today the situation of the majority of wooden houses is poor, the decision is frequently accepted to pull them down. And if one decides to repair them, various restrictions, lack of specialists and construction materials, big expenses await. However, this time the author wants to discuss how we can contribute to the preservation of wooden houses in cities.
A room of one’s own 2014-09-15
The exhibition ”Here and There” of Jovita Aukštikalnytė-Varkulevičienė is open in Kaunas, at Antanas Žmuidzinavičius Memorial Museum until September 21. The author of the article participated in the opening event of the exhibition and heard the short comments of the painter’s friends: “Interesting”, “Very good”, “Different than previous ones”.
