ART COMPENSA fair: 60 artists, 500 works, 3 days of stormy art | Culture

This year, May 24-26. Art creators from not only Lithuania, but also Latvia, Estonia, Iceland, and Ukraine are participating in the 3rd ART Compensa fair. The fair will also be visited by an international audience – tickets for the event are currently on sale in other Baltic countries – Estonia and Latvia.

The selection committee of the event, headed by the artistic director of the fair, prof. Dr. Ramutė Rachlevičiūtė, chairwoman of LDS, Prof. Eglė Ganda Bogdanienė, art historian, art critic doc. Dr. Deima Katinaitė, curator of exhibitions, artistic projects Virginijus Kinčinaitis, architect, designer Audronė Kondratienė, art researcher and culture manager Jovita Nalevaikienė, head of the “Meno rinkos” auction dr. Simona Skaisgirė, Patricija Vytytė, project manager of the virtual painting platform “Art Compensa gallery”, selected more than half a dozen authors from more than a hundred applicants.

Photo of the organizers/Collage

“We are glad that for the third year we can invite art lovers to the Art Compensa Art Fair, which is already becoming a tradition. This year we were surprised by the record high number of applicants to participate in the exhibition, which proves the artists’ confidence in the event, their desire to present their work, communicate directly with viewers and potential buyers, and educate art lovers and collectors.” – Commission member prof. Eglė Ganda Bogdanienė, chairwoman of the Union of Lithuanian Artists.

The diversity of the fair’s participants ranges from crazy pop art, contemporary media art to solid classics. Viewers will be able to remember and get to know the creative legacy of the classics Adolis Jonas Kristopaitis (1925-2000), Algirdas Petrulis (1915-2010), Romuald Radzevičius (1942-2021), Šarūnas Šimulinas (1939-1999), presented by those who protect and nurture their creative legacy. descendants, creators of younger generations.

“Art Compensa presents a huge variety of artistic drawings, types of art, so that the viewer can choose what is most interesting for him,” says Ramutė Rachlevičiūtė, the art manager of the fair.

Photo of the organizers/Collage

At the exhibition, it will be possible to see recognized painters – Bronius Gražis, Linas Liandzbergis, Ieva Skauronė, Jūratė Mykolaitytė, Audrius Gražius, Eglė Velaniškytė, Gražina Vitartaitė, well-known graphic artists – Birutė Stančikaitė, Augusta Bidlauskas, Daiva Kairevičiūtė, Egidijus Rudinskas, photo artists – this year’s National Culture and art prize winners Violeta Bubelytė, Artūrs Valiaugas, Ignos Maldžiūnas, sculptors Liutaurs Griežės, Tadas Gutauskas and many others.

There are also interesting contrasts of the “weight”, experience and expression of artists, such as Valentinas Antanavičius and Benas Liandzbergis, among whom there are perhaps the biggest “scissors” of differences in time and artistic expression. The diversity of genres and techniques at the fair opens up to the viewer in its entirety – from painting, graphics, drawing, to various mixed media works and ceramic objects that are close to applied art, and at the same time light years away from their utilitarian function.

Photo of the organizers/Collage

The special uniqueness of Art Compensa is the opportunity to learn regarding art firsthand, to see and get to know the authors of the works themselves. As many as 60 well-known artists of various generations will present over 500 original works at the fair. Art galleries and managers usually carry out the dissemination and representation of works of art in events of this format.

Meanwhile, ART Compensa shifts the emphasis to the creator, the personality. The “behind the scenes” of creation, usually invisible to the public, will be revealed in filmed images from the artists’ workshops, meetings with the authors and other educational and familiar events of the fair are planned. Gabija Lydytė, the representative of the Compensa concert hall and the manager of the fair’s project, emphasizes that “The organizers of the fair do not seek material gain, no surcharges are applied to the works sold.

Organizers’ photo/Art Compensa 2022

Therefore, it is expected that this will help the creators to gain not only wide interest, but also commercial success.” At the same time, the fair will also open a platform for selling paintings, where it will be possible to purchase the works of original artists at an affordable price.

The lack of larger spaces for large-scale exhibitions is clearly felt in the Lithuanian professional art field. Also, in the professional “workshops” of artists, there is often frustration due to the limited opportunities to show their creativity.

Skeptics would object, as if good works automatically leave the workshop and joyfully appear before the eyes of the audience. However, practitioners of the art field – realists know that works must be noticed, presented in the right place and at the right time. The very genre of the fair – a large short-term exhibition branching out into an intensive program of accompanying events – is perfect not only for the dissemination of works of art, but also for public education, training, growing and strengthening the art market.

Therefore, Art Compensa will create the largest multifunctional cultural leisure zone in Lithuania, undoubtedly focusing on Vilnius as a center of ambitious art events. While increasing the self-confidence of Vilnius residents and strengthening the artistic and cultural self-esteem of the capital of Lithuania, the organizers of the fair pay great attention to the education of the spectators, especially the young generation, schoolchildren. The “Traditional and Contemporary Art Connections” project, which will take place within the framework of the fair, invites schoolchildren and their teachers to educational excursions and meetings with artists.

Photo of the organizers/Collage

During the three days of the fair, not only schoolchildren, but also the most diverse audience will be able to try various techniques, technologies, access to the secrets of artistic creation and technical performance: how modern ceramics are “printed”, how to embroider using digital embroidery techniques.

There will also be live action, allowing you to watch how the creator’s hands, eyes and imagination work – for example, drawing a model, creating quick sketches. The curiosities of painting restoration and calligraphy await, which are certainly not easy to experience and try on your own.

“We are happy with the result, which should not disappoint a lover of contemporary art: you will see the works of famous, recognized artists of the modernist generation in combination with the voice of the middle generation and the “eyes” of young creators — the collection reflects what is happening in our cultural environment, highlights the image of today’s current affairs,” says Deima Katinaitė .

The audience of the event – both art specialists, connoisseurs, collectors, and art lovers should experience a short but stormy gust of art.