NGO “Gallery Weekend” together with the Lithuanian Association of Interdisciplinary Art Creators is this year invited to curate the event by the gallery “Drifts” and its founder, art historian Jolanta Chockevičiūtė Laurent. The main program includes more than 30 galleries and project spaces, while museums and other art institutions will present their events in the additional VGS+ program.
“At the festival, we want to look not only at what galleries show, but also at how and why they operate, to search for the coordinates of each gallery, where artistic vision, market, people, local contexts, and international connections closely merge,” says J. Chockevičiūtė Laurent about this year’s VGS direction.
The four-day event includes contemporary art exhibitions, specially prepared VGS routes, tours, and other events. Visiting the main VGS program activities and exhibitions is free of charge. From the first Vilnius galleries to the newest initiatives, the culture of Lithuanian galleries has formed relatively recently – most of the currently operating spaces appeared after the restoration of independence.
Today, more than 40 art galleries operate in Vilnius, differing in their nature of activity, represented artists, and audiences. Some are private, others belong to artists’ unions or academic institutions, and others have grown out of independent artists’ and curators’ initiatives. VGS encourages looking at this diversity and reflecting on what a gallery is today, what role it plays in the daily life of art creators and culture consumers.
At the festival, we want to look not only at what galleries show, but also at how and why they operate.
More than 30 galleries and project spaces participate in the main VGS program – alongside long-established ones like “Vartai,” “Rooster,” “AV17,” “Meno niša,” or Pamėnkalnio gallery, younger and brand new initiatives line up in the program: “Drifts,” “Asaba,” “Bala,” “care of…” and other spaces. Very different themes are explored in different galleries: nature, myths, daily and yearly cycles, institutional violence, LGBTQIA+ experiences, motherhood, technology, and more.
Alongside painting, photography, sculpture, and graphics, visitors will be able to get acquainted with performative and interdisciplinary practices. The broad four-day VGS program allows choosing what kind of art, mood, or mode of participation is sought that day. A rich event program for personal needs The Vilnius Gallery Weekend, held annually in September, marks the beginning of a new exhibition season. Some galleries purposefully plan exhibition openings for this occasion, others offer an engaging program of ongoing exhibitions. The variety of activities allows choosing the most suitable way to meet art.
Those who want to learn more about specific works or the creative process can choose meetings with artists or curators; those seeking more active participation – workshops or even parties; and those wanting to gain more knowledge – lectures and discussions. Specially prepared routes and personal VGS team recommendations will help independently explore the city’s art coordinates.
On the first day of the festival, Thursday, a long-distance route through exhibition openings awaits. New exhibitions will be presented by the Sculpture and Stained Glass Center in Naujininkai, TUMO and “care of…” galleries in Užupis, and the art space “Asaba” in Vilkpėdė. The organizers invite to end the day at the Gallery Weekend opening event open to all at the cultural complex SODAS 2123, where from 9:30 PM musical performances, an informal atmosphere, and the bustle of the café-bar “Estafetė” will welcome guests.
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If the abundant offer takes your breath away or you don’t know where to start, special VGS tours will take place from September 11 to 13, led by art market consultant Emilija Šneiderytė and “Vilnius Art Walk” art historians Gediminas Jasinskas and Monika Eidėjūtė. Each tour participant will visit three different spaces.
E. Šneiderytė will focus more on the principles of gallery operation and their behind-the-scenes work, while “Vilnius Art Walk” will focus on the interpretation of exhibited works and direct engagement with art. Exact tour times are indicated on the VGS website.
Saturday in the VGS program is discussion day. At 2 PM and 4 PM, two VGS-initiated talks will take place at the “Drifts” gallery. The first – “Gallery Culture Exposures” – is dedicated to the development of galleries in Lithuania and abroad and the current state of galleries. Participants will include Dr. Aistė Bimbirytė, director of the LNDM Vilnius Picture Gallery, art historian Ernestas Parulskis, curator and contemporary art market expert Justė Jonutytė, and curator, head of the art and culture space “Medūza,” Audrius Pocius. The second meeting, titled “Portrait of a Gallerist,” will feature Berta Zubrickaitė, director of the London gallery “Edel Assanti,” Agnieszka Fąferek, founder of the Milan gallery “eastcontemporary,” Olga Temnikova, founder of the Tallinn gallery “Temnikova and Kasela,” and curator Justė Kostikovaitė discussing the realities of the contemporary gallerist profession, the networks they create, and their influence on shaping art discourse and the market.
What is the difference between a gallery and a museum? VGS+ program To keep the main focus on galleries and project spaces, this year the VGS+ part is separated from the main program. It features museums and other state-funded institutional art spaces.
Museum activities are based on collection accumulation, preservation, research, and long-term programming, while galleries operate as dynamic contemporary art platforms closely collaborating with artists, presenting their work, and helping their works reach collections and a wider audience. Although the institutional purposes of museums and galleries differ, their activities often overlap – it is precisely their overlaps and differences that allow a better understanding of how the city’s art field operates today.
This year, the VGS+ program includes the Jonas Mekas Visual Arts Center, five branches of the Lithuanian National Museum of Art, three Vilnius City Museum spaces, the LNDM Kazys Varnelis House-Museum, MO Museum, the Lithuanian National Martynas Mažvydas Library, and other institutions. They also offer temporary exhibitions, permanent displays, educational programs, tours, and other activities to visitors. Ticket prices for VGS+ participants vary – some are free to visit, others have a 50% discount, or the regular ticket price applies.
Up-to-date information about specific events and visiting conditions can be found on the VGS website. Galleries, project spaces, and museums are different actors in the art ecosystem. The eleventh Vilnius Gallery Weekend offers to see these places not only as points on the city map but as a network, of which every visitor becomes a part.
The entire Vilnius Gallery Weekend program is here.
