Archives: Projects

Urban Cultural Planning

 

The Urban Cultural Planning project was funded by Interreg and locally led by Vilnius Tech University. Together with my colleague Ineta Pliekaitytė, I took up the role of researcher and co-led monthly workshops with the Šnipiškės community. In 2020, marked by lockdown, the workshops sought ways to reach the community remotely while keeping a tactile, place-based element. We wanted to offer the community a break from the digital and create a different way to connect with us.

To introduce ourselves, together with local artist Pizinas, we produced 30 plywood cats that were placed around the neighbourhood. Each cat carried a note inviting people to take it home and participate in Cultural Probe exercises contained in envelopes attached to them. This approach gave us insights into people’s lives and allowed us to connect in a new, semi-digital way.

We also left notes, set up boxes with instructions for making Christmas decorations and Advent calendars, and encouraged small acts of kindness for neighbours.

As preparation for the spring workshop, we organised a brainstorming session where residents were invited to share their ideas for public space use. Building on this, we created a small community garden, fenced off a play area from the parking road, and knitted nests for children’s play, as well as cosy, safe spaces for rest.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

 

Photos and video by Gvidas Bindokas and Mantas Narkevičius

Urban Cultural Planning project by Interreg

Partners in Lithuania: Vilnius Tech University, lead by Jekaterina Lavrinec

Researchers and Community Managers: Ineta Pliekaitytė and Ieva Šimkonytė

In collaboration with local artist Pijus Čeikauskas (pijinas)

 

Pašnipinėkim: Homes and Stories in Šnipiškės

The open-air exhibition on Giedraičiai Street shares stories of the neighbourhood gathered during a summer workshop organised by the Vilnius Museum and the Wooden Architecture Center. Swords, whistles, decks of cards, tiles, clay decorations, old house number plates, family photographs of Šnipiškės gardens, and many other items were presented together with their stories and meanings.

The exhibition design was developed in collaboration with local artist Staselė. Her visuals guided the concept: simple plywood boards, chosen in reference to the wooden architecture of the neighbourhood. The panels are double-sided, with the reverse side emphasising that the exhibition is meant not only for passersby but also for the residents who lent their fences for the display. UV printing was selected to help reduce the sustainability footprint.

Finally, the exhibition was designed to remain in the neighbourhood after the event. The panels will be transformed into stools inspired by details of wooden houses and used in the Wooden Architecture Center.

The exhibition is organised by the Vilnius Museum and the Wooden Architecture Center.

Exhibition design by Ieva Šimkonytė, graphic design by Goda Kairiūkštytė, iliustrations by Staselė Jakunskaitė, installation by Optimum Solution.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Photographer: Gintarė Grigėnaitė

Pašnipinėkim: Homes and Stories in Šnipiškės

The window display continues the outdoor exhibition in the wooden Šnipiškės neighbourhood. It showcases community artefacts collected during the project’s workshop stage. Local residents contributed historical items and shared their stories with the Vilnius Museum and the Wooden Architecture Center, which moved into the neighbourhood for a summer weekend. A sword, a deck of cards, and a clay ornament are now safely displayed in the heart of Vilnius, inviting passersby to venture into Šnipiškės. There, the outdoor exhibition presents stories of other treasured objects preserved in the area and offers deeper insights into the neighbourhood’s history.

The exhibition is organised by the Vilnius Museum and the Wooden Architecture Center.

Window display designed by Ieva Šimkonytė, graphic design by Goda Kairiūkštytė, iliustrations by Staselė Jakunskaitė.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Photographer: Gintarė Grigėnaitė

Visualisations: Ieva Šimkonytė

LITUANICA: To Dream and To Conquer

The travelling exhibition „LITHUANICA: To Dream and To Conquer“ commemorates the 90th anniversary of the flight across the Atlantic Ocean by Steponas Darius and Sasys Girenas. The exhibition tells the story about one of the most important events of the 20th Century Lithuania: the flight across the Atlantic in 1933, and the release of the film „The Flight Across the Atlantic“ in 1983, directed by Rimundas Vabalas.

Darius and Girenas were terminated to cross the Atlantic, flying from New York Floyd Bennett  Airoport to Kaunas. On July the 15th 1993, 4:24 PM they took off from New York. Unfortunately, the plain crashed (in current Polish territory) when there were only 650 km left to the destination. They flew 6 411 km uninterruptedly for 37 hours and 11 minutes. This was the second longest uninterrupted flight in the history at the time. Such dedication to making the name of the homeland famous has led to a great and undying attention in Lithuania to this legendary flight and pilots.

“Flight Across the Atlantic is the most popular Lithuanian feature film in the history of Lithuanian cinema: in the 1980s, it was seen by more than 647 000 viewers, i.e. about one in five Lithuanians at the time.

 

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Exhibition team:

Curator: Nideta Jarockienė

Exhibition Designer: Ieva Šimkonytė

Graphic Designer: Modesta Žemugalytė

IT Coordinator: Audrius Janulevičius

Production: MB “Montažo fėjos”