One morning, while sipping coffee in the green courtyard of Sandycamps in Peniche, Portugal, I received a message on my Instagram account from Kolektiv Cité Radieuse, informing me about an open call for a collective residence for Kunanas 2022, dedicated to Modernism Heritage Interpretation. I was excited to learn about the opportunity as I had been contemplating my artistic plans for the upcoming autumn and winter. The potential project encompassed everything I value: spending time with like-minded individuals, learning from other passionate professionals while working on topics of personal interest and engaging in creation, which is fundamental to my essence.
Upon returning to Lithuania, I embarked on the residency in Kaunas. Over the course of a few days, we were treated to inspiring lectures and presentations by individuals deeply passionate about Modernism heritage, as well as insights from the curators, Maxime Forest and Laura Serra.
During the residency, we defined our objectives, with the primary aim being to create artworks by interpreting Kaunas Modernism. From the outset, I was clear that I wanted to bring to fruition a project that had been brewing in my mind for some time. Thus, I elected to focus on my favorite Kaunas house - House of Iljinai family - and created a series of interior objects.
The project spanned nearly a year, with Maxime and Laura guiding us through the process every step of the way.
So in September (2022), an exhibition called “Kaunas Modernism Interpreted” opened. It was the final stop of our year-long project, commissioned by the Cultural capital city of Europe Kaunas 2022 to Laura Serra and Maxime Forest, co-founders of Kolektiv Cité Radieuse, based at the UNESCO-listed Le Corbusier Housing Unit in Marseille.
Designers & artists whose interpretation you could see in the exhibition: Lukas Tomaševičius (Studio “Archetip”), Martyna Kildaitė, Rokas Mikšiūnas, Gertrūda Ramūnaitė-Dryžė, Laima Numavičė (Numas Studio), Rasa Anaitytė and Nicolas Leeber (Focal Point), Aušra Sedlevičiūtė, Povilas Vincentas Jankūnas, Ignas Čeponis, Jan Šrámek, Studio "Falbanka", Zuza Gadomska and others.
I am eternally grateful to the organizers and curators who meticulously planned and orchestrated the entire project in such a fruitful way(!!)
And many thanks for a designer Justinas Dadonas (Panama Workshop) for the help with 3D printing:)
(by Amira Pociūtė)
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