Commissioner of the pavilion – general director of LNDM dr. Arūnas Gelūnas. The curators of the exhibition are Valentinas Klimašauskas and João Laia. The landscape and architecture of the installation were created by Petras Išora-Lozuraitis and Ona Lozuraitytė-Išorė (“Išora x Lozutaitytė Studio”). The Lithuanian national pavilion in the Sant’Antonino church will be open until October 31.
“The visionary gaze of the world-renowned duo of contemporary artists Pakui Hardware provocatively looks at the sensitive problems of humanity – our and the planet’s bodies suffering from pandemic, social and economic inflammations,” says LNDM General Director and Commissioner of the Lithuanian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale Dr. A. Gelūnas.
Photo by Ugniaus Gelgudas/Lithuanian National Pavilion at the Venice Biennale of Contemporary Art. Pakui Hardware and Marija Teresė Rožanskaitė exhibition “Ignition”, 2024
“Ignition” was presented at the LNDM Museum of Applied Art and Design last fall. After the national premiere, the installation traveled to Venice.
Presented to the world audience, “Ignition” is complemented by MTRožanskaitė’s paintings and specially adapted to the unique space of Sant’Antoninos Church, which is much higher than the spaces of the historic Vilnius Arsenal and is protected by strict heritage protection rules. 7th century Built by the Badoer family, 12th and 17th centuries. the reconstructed church is currently being restored and very rarely hosts secular activities – the national pavilion is being opened there for the first time.
Photo by Ugniaus Gelgudas/Lithuanian National Pavilion at the Venice Biennale of Contemporary Art. Pakui Hardware and Marija Teresė Rožanskaitė exhibition “Ignition”, 2024
Even before the official opening of the pavilion, “Uždegimas”, which analyzes topics sensitive to today’s society, attracted the attention of the Lithuanian and international media. Interviews with artists and reviews were published by such influential cultural publications as “Artform”, “Art Review”, “Kunstforum International” and others.
An intergenerational look at the effects of systemic wrongs and a call to heal
Opening in Venice, “Ignition” weaves together the artistic practices and experiences of different generations, and explores the inflammations of (post)human, social and planetary bodies caused by today’s economic and social causes. MTRožanskaitė’s painting and “Pakui Hardware” sculptural installation combine the motifs of medicine and health, nature, outer space and industrial landscape.
Photo by Arūnas Baltėnas/Pakui Hardware: Neringa Černiauskaitė and Ugnius Gelguda
“Pakui Hardware” was inspired by Marya Rupa and Rajus Patel’s book “Flaming. Deep Medicine and the Anatomy of Injustice” (“Inflamed: Deep Medicine and the Anatomy of Injustice”), in which the concept of inflammation metaphorically speaks of the systemic harm done to humanity and the planet.
“Ignition allows us to perceive what is invisible to the naked eye – the history written in the human and planetary bodies, the systems that are the real causes of ailments, the suppressed internal combustion. However, recognizing inflammation can be a starting point on the road to recovery if only we begin to consider more seriously the interconnectedness of all things, both living and inert. The installation invites the viewer to experience a slightly feverish and giddy state of mind and body in order to perceive the complex web of life. A network that includes many subjects and fields – from medicine to hybrid nature, from the nervous system to the crackling sounds of technological scanning”, N. Černiauskaitė and U. Gelguda say.
Photo by Ugniaus Gelgudas/Lithuanian National Pavilion at the Venice Biennale of Contemporary Art. Pakui Hardware and Marija Teresė Rožanskaitė exhibition “Ignition”, 2024
Pakui Hardwar’s glass and aluminum sculptures resemble enlarged nervous systems with pulsating ignition points. They are brought to life by a surface-scanning beam that replicates medical procedures. TM Rožanskaitė’s paintings reveal the radiant tension of chronic inflammation of unnamed diseases, sterile operating rooms, medical offices, mechanical objects and the cosmic body.
“The sculptural installation of contemporary artists Pakui Hardware with the paintings of modernist MTRožanskaitė speaks of the planet as a feverish body. In collaboration with the architects Išora x Lozuraitytė Studio, light artist Eugenijus Sabaliauskas and other professionals, the works of artists of different generations were combined into a multi-layered environment, which is both a map of our times and a cosmological environment, and perhaps a stop for hope and recovery,” say the curators. V. Klimašauskas and J. Laia.
Photo by Ugniaus Gelgudas/Lithuanian National Pavilion at the Venice Biennale of Contemporary Art. Pakui Hardware and Marija Teresė Rožanskaitė exhibition “Ignition”, 2024
Silicone membranes, medical and hybrid installation landscape materials combine the elements of the exhibition into an impressive techno-organism created by the architects. He highlights the connections between diseased bodies and the inflammatory environment and suggests a search for a metabolic balance that would “cool down” the flaming bodies of man and planet.
“Ignition” is accompanied by two exclusive publications
The exhibition is accompanied by a catalog published by LNDM and Mousse Publishing. It consisted of Pakui Hardware, V. Klimašauskas, J. Laia and Egla Mikalajūnė. The catalog publishes texts by A. Gelūn, Estelle Hoy, “Išora x Lozuraitytė Studio”, V. Klimašauskas, Inga Lāce and J. Laias.
On April 20, Saturday, the book “Marija Teresė Rožanskaitė: X-Rays of Art and Life”, which was just published by “MTR art foundation”, will be presented at the Lithuanian National Pavilion. The book was compiled by dr. Laima Kreivytė and Mykolas Piekuras.
Both publications will be available for purchase following visiting the Lithuanian National Pavilion in Venice, and later – at LNDM e-mail. in the store.
Foreigners everywhere
The Venice Biennale of Contemporary Art has been held every two years since 1895. It is the most prestigious contemporary art exhibition in the world. The theme of this year’s biennial exhibition is “Stranieri Ovunque”.
According to the curator Adran Pedrosa’s decision, the jubilee exhibition focuses on artists who are themselves foreigners, immigrants, expatriates, diasporas, emigrants, exiles and refugees.
The Lithuanian national pavilion at the 60th Venice Biennale of Contemporary Art
Church of Sant’Antonin
Castello 3300
30122 Venice
https://www.labiennale.org/en/noticeboard/453
Open I-VII from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
It is most convenient to reach the water by bus (vaporetto) going to the stop San Zaccaria A.
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2024-04-19 19:56:40
