Lithuania
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The museum invites to document the history of COVID-19 together (Vilnius, Lithuania)
Life because of the COVID-19 pandemic has changed a lot around the world. This period will surely go down in history. Therefore, the National Museum of Lithuania invited people to contribute to the reflection of this period in history and to share items that may become museum exhibits in the future. That could be anything: diaries with the described experiences and reflections of pandemic time, things that people do not imagine everyday life during quarantine, e.g., books, drawings, games diversifying limited leisure time, even original masks, etc. Tangible material was especially valuable to the museum but virtual material such as digital photos, videos were also welcome. Background The National Museum…
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Different cities connected through the “portal” (Lublin, Poland & Vilnius, Lithuania)
On May 26th of 2021 the installation “Portal” connected two cities – Vilnius in Lithuania and Lublin in Poland, which is historically inseparable from our country. The futuristic installation turned out to be exactly what was lacking in a world tired of pandemic travel restrictions. With the slogan “Portal – a bridge to the united world” the project brings us the symbolic idea. The “portal” invites people to experience our world as it is “united and one – without borders, prejudices, and labels of us and them” – states authors of the project. Background An installation connecting Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, with the Polish city Lublin is an idea…
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Photo project “Quarantine windows” – daily routine of Lithuanians during the quarantine captured in photos (Kaunas, Lithuania)
“Quarantine windows” was a photography project implemented during the first lockdown. With the beginning of the first quarantine our usual life was “suspended” for a while, no travels, no meetings with relatives and friends, no restaurants, no shops and so on. We had to get used to living between the four walls temporarily and look at the world through the computer screens or… windows. Therefore, the project “Quarantine windows” aimed to reveal what quarantine of various people (both families and individuals, seniors and children, etc.) looks like, to convey their moods and emotions through the portraits. Background The authors of the idea were the community program “Fluxus Labas” of the…
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Cinema screenings on the runway at Vilnius Airport – project “Aerocinema – the journey begins” (Vilnius, Lithuania)
Vilnius international film festival “Kino pavasaris” (English – Cinema spring), which has moved to a virtual space due to the quarantine, has presented a new idea for film screening – project “Aerocinema – the journey begins”. In May of 2020 at the Vilnius Airport area, where normally planes take off and land, a drive-in cinema was opened. Spectators longing for the spectacular experiences and travels had the opportunity “to fly” in ever-changing directions for four weeks with the help of a giant screen. Over 60 cinema trips were organized at Vilnius Airport and about 13 500 people took part in them with their cars. Background The Vilnius international film festival…
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Photography exhibition inspired by the COVID-19 hotline in Lithuania No. 1808 (Vilnius, Lithuania)
Lithuanian photographer Andrius Repšys in his photo work series examines probably one of the most relevant topics in the world – the impact of coronavirus on people and their daily lives. Inspired by the COVID-19 hotline in Lithuania No. 1808, the photographer came out with the idea to organize the exhibition „Project 1808. Quarantine“. The creation of the photo series started at the beginning of quarantine in Lithuania. The photographer captured the central squares of different Lithuanian cities from a drone at the one exact time – 18:08 h. The series of photos not only documents a historical event, but also examines topics related to it and raises the questions…
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Culture to the Courtyards. Kaunas transformed into open air scenes (Kaunas, Lithuania)
The quarantine affected our daily routine, but life didn’t stop. During the first lockdown Kaunas, the European Capital of Culture 2022, introduced the project “Culture to the Courtyards”. This initiative brought culture to the citizens’ courtyards without prejudicing the quarantine restrictions of that time. Background Project “Culture to the Courtyards” was an initiative of public institution “Kaunas 2022”. The institution was established to implement the cultural program “Kaunas – European Capital of Culture 2022”. In 2015 it began the journey to becoming a European Capital of Culture with the slogan “from temporary to contemporary”. As it is stated in the official website “The organization aims at the union of cultural…
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Museum brought art to people’s homes (Vilnius, Lithuania)
When cultural life moved to a virtual space Lithuanian National Museum of Art together with the information partner Lithuanian National Radio and Television (LNRT) decided “to bring art to people’s home” and implemented the project “30 Artworks, 30 Creators, 30 Weeks”. In this project 30 renowned Lithuanian artists (painters, writers, musicians, architects, designers, and others) were invited to choose the artwork in any exposition of Lithuanian National Museum of Art department and in the video story tell the audience why that artwork is important and special to them. These videos were placed on the websites of the Museum and LNRT and their social networks, also shown in the LNRT morning…
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An open-air exhibition “Homo absentia” (Vilnius, Lithuania)
Cultural institutions during the lockdown were looking for the different ways of how to reach their audience. Mostly that was the virtual activities which could not last long because people started to get tired of the “online” everything. Moreover, virtual exhibitions couldn’t in most cases replace the need to be face-to-face with an artwork. Therefore, the Lewben Art Foundation together with the partners organized an open-air exhibition “Homo Absentia” (The Person is Missing/Absent). This exhibition created a unique opportunity for the residents of Vilnius to change their routes and to visit the open-air exhibition on their daily routine. Background Exhibition was organized by the Lewben Art Foundation together with the…
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Discover Jewish heritage with(out) leaving home (Kaunas, Lithuania)
Kaunas Vincas Kudirka Public Library adapted to the quarantine conditions and invited their visitors to try the unusual experience – the interactive and modern map of Jewish cultural heritage. This map allowed people to “walk” around the city and learn more about the Jewish cultural heritage in Kaunas without leaving home. An interactive map in four languages allowed (and still do) people to visit virtually more than 40 cultural monuments, see the unique archival footage, play an interactive game, or take a walk around the city’s heritage sites on their own. This interactive map was announced as the most memorable Kaunas cultural initiative of 2020 because of the impact on…
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A giant open-air gallery in the streets of Vilnius. Project “Art needs no roof” (Vilnius, Lithuania)
The project was born in response to quarantine restrictions that prevented art galleries from operating, so artists could not exhibit and sell their works. Willing to support the artists, Vilnius City Municipality together with the outdoor advertising company JCDecaux Lietuva implemented project “Art needs no roof” and invited artist to showcase their works on billboards free of charge. In this way, Vilnius became one giant open-air art gallery and connected artists with art lovers. Background The project “Art needs no roof” was an initiative of Vilnius City Municipality together with the outdoor advertising company JCDecaux Lietuva. Vilnius City Municipality is governmental institution operating in the public sector whereas the JCDecaux…