Cinema and Photography

In brief: Ignas Stanys and Vaiva Lanskoronskytė's photography exhibition Lithuanian light images was opened in Vilnius, at the Journalists' House (Jogailos str. 11) on the 1st of April. These are the artistic portrait series of the prominent Lithuanian personalities of culture. Most of the portrait series are accompanied by short photo stories - sound slides, developed from the portrait photographs and conversation fragments.

The tandem of photographers begin their ride around the world culture fosterers from actor and director Benas Šarka. B. Šarka has created Gliukų theatre, which consists of one person - himself. This director is an outsider to the theatre community in the very best sense of the word. Nonconformist B. Šarka's motion plays and performances create a unique participation effect. V. Lanskoronskytė suggestively created a phantasmagorical B. Šarka's stage allusion.

After a quiet but shocking session of stage art we pause to listen to the spacious words of Vladas Braziūnas. In Ignas Stanys’ photograph we see a poet, and an intellectual. V. Braziūnas is posing next to the gate of Vilnius University where he graduated from Lithuanian philology. A thoughtful face in the blurry background of the room. Poet looking through the window, surrounded by grey Soviet monolithic buildings. The photographs bring about the junction of the two contrasting emergences.

After the meeting with the master of the word, we start taking in the images. V. Lanskoronskytė's frames captured photographer Remigijus Treigys. The leitmotif of a lamp repeats in the several photographs. "Photography is writing with light," once said Vaiva. Thus, I assume that the source of light entered the field vision of the lens intentionally.

With I. Stanys' triptych we return to exploring the performing arts. R. Adomaitis in his pictures looks like he is on the stage - the audience's glances directed at him. R. Adomaitis' face is decorated with a stage smile and in another frame actor embodies grief.

A. Kmieliauskas, who is devoted to his profession, captured in I. Stanys' photography series automatically infects the viewers with his creative spirit. I. Stanys' photographs provide a hint at the artist's versatility. A. Kmieliauskas creates sculptures, graphics, easel paintings and frescoes.

From the workshop silence we move back to the stage echoing with applause. Actor Valentinas Masalskis glances from under the edges of a black hat. In the photo story we hear a modest reasoning by V. Masalskis, who says that he, as a student would never bypass his teachers and, on the other hand, he as a teacher should not be bypassed, because it would mean that he was a bad teacher.

Next, I. Stanys' photographs invite to philosophize with Arvydas Šliogeris. It is from the Lithuanian National Prize laureate that the photographers borrowed the term "light images" for the title of their exhibition.