{"id":25287,"date":"2026-06-12T09:59:53","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T06:59:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lndm.devmerit.com\/taikomosios-dailes-ir-meno-muziejus\/renginiai\/from-an-armoury-into-a-culture-space-the-revival-story-of-the-museum-of-applied-arts-and-design-told-by-danas-aleksas-exhibition\/"},"modified":"2026-06-12T09:59:53","modified_gmt":"2026-06-12T06:59:53","slug":"from-an-armoury-into-a-culture-space-the-revival-story-of-the-museum-of-applied-arts-and-design-told-by-danas-aleksas-exhibition","status":"publish","type":"renginys","link":"https:\/\/lndm.devmerit.com\/en\/museum-of-applied-arts-and-design\/events\/from-an-armoury-into-a-culture-space-the-revival-story-of-the-museum-of-applied-arts-and-design-told-by-danas-aleksas-exhibition\/","title":{"rendered":"From an armoury into a culture space \u2013 the revival story of the Museum of Applied Arts and Design told by Danas Aleksa\u2019s exhibition"},"content":{"rendered":"

Thursday,\u00a018th\u00a0June, the Museum of Applied Arts and Design of the Lithuanian National Museum of Art (LNMA)\u00a0(Arsenalo\u00a0St\u00a03A, Vilnius)\u00a0opened\u00a0Danas\u00a0Aleksa\u2019s\u00a0solo\u00a0exhibition\u00a0<\/span>Foot, Face,\u00a0Vault\u00a0and Key<\/span><\/i>.\u00a0The pivotal axis of the story is one of main\u00a0historic\u00a0armouries of the\u00a0Grand Dutchy of Lithuania, which came to become a\u00a0museum.\u00a0The opening night invited guests to\u00a0experience\u00a0new sound and\u00a0atmosphere\u00a0of\u00a0the historical space of the Old Arsenal, enhanced by a socially inclusive,\u00a0immersive musical and spatial performance.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

D\u017eiuljeta\u00a0\u017diug\u017edien\u0117, director of the LNMA Museum of Applied Arts and Design,\u00a0invites\u00a0to the exhibition and its opening event: \u201cDo not miss the opportunity to see this exhibition\u00a0and take part in the opening performance,\u00a0celebrating the creative cooperation of the artist Danas Aleksa and the\u00a0well-known\u00a0composer Snieguol\u0117 Dik\u010di\u016bt\u0117. The piece\u00a0<\/span>The Arsenal\u00a0\u2013\u00a0the Cross-Sections of the Arch<\/span><\/i>\u00a0is\u00a0about\u00a0inclusivity of all social groups \u2013 professional artists, enthusiasts,\u00a0and disabled people who discover their creative potential\u00a0through\u00a0an act of union, thus strengthening cultural dialogue.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The golden ratio in a concrete mixer<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To\u00a0interpret the history of the museum\u00a0building,\u00a0the interdisciplinary artist Danas Aleksa\u00a0employs\u00a0the\u00a0paradigm of the\u00a0arch \u2013 one of the most ancient elements of architecture,\u00a0which inspired engineering discoveries\u00a0on the one hand,\u00a0and came to symbolize military conquests and\u00a0embody spiritual\u00a0concepts\u00a0on the other.\u00a0Though the arch is rare in contemporary construction, and the terms used back in a day by the\u00a0arch\u00a0builders\u00a0are forgotten, traces of\u00a0the foot,\u00a0the\u00a0face and\u00a0the\u00a0vault are still\u00a0visible\u00a0in the architecture of the museum. The exhibition\u00a0surrounded by\u00a0the graceful curves of the historical arches, however,\u00a0is not\u00a0solely a story of\u00a0the past. The concrete mixer\u00a0\u2013\u00a0the robust energiser of\u00a0the contemporary urban landscape,\u00a0signalling expansion of construction\u00a0by\u00a0its\u00a0constant\u00a0presence on the roads,\u00a0also\u00a0plays\u00a0a role of importance\u00a0in the exhibition.\u00a0The rotating\u00a0concrete mixer\u2019s\u00a0drum reminds to\u00a0the\u00a0artist of the spiral of a seashell,\u00a0it also\u00a0associates with the golden section and\u00a0with the Brutalist\u00a0architecture, the creators of which transformed concrete structures into\u00a0a\u00a0distinct language of modernity.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cPersonal details \u2013 cannon names \u2013 also reveal historic strata of the arsenal\u201d,\u00a0the artist says. \u201cOne of them had a name of \u201cVitold\u201d,\u00a0which,\u00a0most likely, originates\u00a0from \u201cVytautas\u201d.\u00a0There was\u00a0another, called\u00a0\u201cBaba\u201d.\u00a0These names add some unexpected human\u00a0aspect\u00a0and another dimension to the story of\u00a0the\u00a0military past. In the contemporary narrative, the volumes of concrete mixer,\u00a0which connect the historic war technology with\u00a0the\u00a0contemporary processes of artistic expression,\u00a0become metaphors for the cannon.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A shift from a weapons storage\u00a0into a museum\u00a0<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The main key of the exhibition opens the history of the museum. The\u00a0<\/span>Museum of Applied Arts and Design is housed in the east wing of the Old Arsenal of the Lower Castle of Vilnius.\u00a0In the 16<\/span>th<\/span>\u00a0century,\u00a0it was a residence of Elizabeth of\u00a0Austria,\u00a0and\u00a0was transformed into the main arsenal\u00a0of\u00a0weapons and ammunition\u00a0only later.\u00a0Even much later, during soviet years, the half-ruined\u00a0Renaissance building\u00a0was occupied by\u00a0soviet military.\u00a0The year\u00a01986\u00a0saw\u00a0the building rebuild and adapted for the needs of the museum\u00a0following\u00a0the design by\u00a0Evaldas Purlys.\u00a0The architect restorer\u00a0features as\u00a0a protagonist\u00a0of\u00a0the exhibition. In a filmed interview,\u00a0Purlys\u00a0recalls the works of the reconstruction of the museum; he talks more of\u00a0the building\u2019s unique roof\u00a0structure\u00a0and introduces\u00a0yet another\u00a0architectural term of\u00a0<\/span>attica.<\/span><\/i>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The exhibition curator\u00a0Aist\u0117 Kisarauskait\u0117\u00a0observes that the artist,\u00a0revisiting and conceptualizing the\u00a0transformation of the building,\u00a0seems to\u00a0addresses\u00a0everyone\u00a0living in troubled times, wishing that: \u201call\u00a0weapon storages, which are\u00a0used to\u00a0threaten us or to defend ourselves,\u00a0become places\u00a0of peace and culture \u2013\u00a0the\u00a0museums,\u00a0while\u00a0their\u00a0vaults and basements\u00a0stop being\u00a0shelters to\u00a0humans\u00a0from foe\u2019s attacks, but,\u00a0instead, become homes\u00a0for\u00a0the\u00a0rich collections of art.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Darius Aleksa\u2019s solo exhibition\u00a0<\/span>Foot, Face,\u00a0Vault\u00a0and Key<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span>runs until 24th\u00a0August<\/span>\u00a0at\u00a0<\/span>the Museum of Applied Arts and Design. Information on events and education workshops inviting to learn a broader history of the museum through the exhibition is posted on the LNMA website and social media.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Curator\u00a0Aist\u0117\u00a0Kisarauskait\u0117<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Coordinator\u00a0Ma\u017evydas\u00a0Truklickas<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Composer\u00a0Snieguol\u0117 Dik\u010di\u016bt\u0117<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Sound design by\u00a0Valdas Narkevi\u010dius<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\n