Creative Vilnius

creative vilnius
reasons to feel inspired
creative vilnius
It is already more than 700 years
since Vilnius has been uninterruptedly
created by its people.
In the course of its history, people
have always been trying to realize
their visions and ideas about their
environment, ideas that influence
their own lives and the lives of their
children. They also tell each other
legends and stories about the city,
explaining how it became what
it is. These myths and stories are
transmitted to other generations as a
heritage.
Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania,
was first mentioned in written records
in 1323. In 2009 Lithuania celebrated
a millennium since the first recorded
mention of its name. It was also the
year in which Vilnius was the European
Capital of Culture.
Vilnius was once not only culturally
but also geographically the center of
the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The
religious and cultural heritage of this
city is very multifaceted. Lithuanians,
Poles, Russians, Belarusians, Jews, and
Karaites have called Vilnius their home
for centuries.
In particular, the last few centuries
have been extremely dynamic for
Vilnius. Vestiges of the Russian Empire
highlights
The current area of Vilnius is 402 square kilometers. In 2010, there
were 548835 persons living in Vilnius (16% of the population of
Lithuania), buildings soccupied 29.1% of its area, green spaces – 68.8%,
rivers and lakes – 2.1%.
The city generates 25% of National GDP. According to the Mapping
Document of Creative Industries in Vilnius, the income of the Vilnius
Creative Economy during 2009 was well over 1 billion euros. Over 3
thousand creative businesses were active in Vilnius in 2009; this sector
employed over 35 thousand persons. However, even though Vilnius is
home to almost 60 percent of the entire Lithuanian Creative Economy,
its creativity cannot be reduced to simple economic and social
statistics. Vilnius is creative because it inspires its people to create.
are still relevant; the loss of a whole
universe of Jewish culture during the
Second World War has left its own
scars on the social and cultural face of
the city; the Soviet period introduced
its own particular traces that cannot
be erased from the collective memory.
Indeed, they should not be, because,
ultimately, it is exactly all these
cultural perplexities, memories, and
tensions that nourish the creative
energy of the city itself, push its
life forward, and transform this city
into something that makes its life
interesting and constantly openended.
It is all about its people, who transform their city according to their breathtaking
visions
, who
stories
memories
diversity freedom
contemporary art
performance
creative communities
green spaces
keep telling to each other compelling
about their past and future, people who share
of experienced political, social, religious, and cultural
their living
, who cherish
of expression, which promotes
and culture, people who are thrilled by
new technologies, by
open
neibourhoods surrounded by the city’s symphony of vast
and interaction, people who take part in
while dwelling in
visions
There is much about visions when we
talk about Vilnius. A mysterious vision
of a howling iron wolf on top of the hill
at the confluence of the Neris and Vilnia
rivers inspired Grand Duke of Lithuania
Gediminas to found Vilnius some 700
years ago. A vision of the religious
future of the entire nation was at stake
when, according to legend, a heathen
shrine was transferred from the Baltic
coast to the place where Vilnius was
later founded.
When Christianity finally came
to Lithuania, it had its own visions,
according to which, quite ironically,
Christian churches were constructed at
the places of pagan sanctuaries. It was
only a few years ago that remnants of
the shrine to Perkūnas, the Lithuanian
god of thunder and storms, were
found in the cellars of the Cathedral
Basilica – the main church of Vilnius
and Lithuania. Vilnius was shaped and
transformed by the visions of many
different rulers and regimes. The
palace of the Grand Dukes was erected
at the foot of Gediminas Hill in the 16th
century. Three hundred years later, it
was allowed to demolish by the Russian
authorities not without the intention
of getting rid of a symbol of the once
independent Commonwealth of Poland
and Lithuania. Since independence was
restored in 1990, the palace has been
reconstructed, again, mostly according
to the visions of the politicians in
power.
There are several hills around
Vilnius Old Town and a number of other
elevations for sightseers. A cup of coffee
on the top floor of the Lietuva Hotel
or dinner in the revolving restaurant in
the television tower will certainly help
visitors grasp the character of the city
from a bird’s-eye view.
highlights
1. Gediminas monument
highlights
2. Archikathedral
1. Visions
of the
new Vilnius
3. Pallace
of Grand
Dukeserected on the right bank of the Neris
River.
4. St. John Church and Vilnius University
5. Pilies street
2. Because
of its picturesque scenery, high quality of infrastructure
6. services,
City hall and competitive prices, Vilnius has become a center for
and
international film productions.
3. A monument to Grand Duke Gediminas, the founder of Vilnius.
4. A panoramic view of Vilnius from Gediminas Hill. The Palace of the
Grand Dukes is at the bottom of the picture.
1.
2.
3.
4.
stories
2.
Vilnius has been a character in many
literary works. Ancient myths and urban
legends are repeated and reflected in
modern life and literature. Ričardas
Gavelis, in his philosophical horror novel
Vilnius Poker, described the basement of
Narutis Café as the epicenter of cosmic
evil symbolized by the Soviet totalitarian
regime. According to Gavelis, this was
exactly the place where Vilnius local
dragon, Basilisk, lived. According to
an ancient legend, Basilisk was active
on the opposite bank of the Vilnia just
outside Sereikiškės Park.
Before becoming a popular place for
artists and a leading creative center, the
Užupis district was mainly populated by
cats, vagabonds, and alcoholics. Quite
incidentally, the action of one of the
most sensitive love stories in Vilnius-
related literature takes place in Užupis.
Jonas Kunčinas wrote his novel Tula
before the fall of the Soviet regime in
1990, but the value of human emotions
and their contrast to a rough and
desolate environment are very much at
the heart of Vilnius baroque soul.
Literature and the theme of love are
also relevant when we speak about the
French writer and double Goncourt Prize
winner Romain Gary, who was presumably
born in Vilnius in 1914. One of the most
eminent French novelists of the 20th
century, he described his memories of
the first love he experienced in Vilnius
when he was a child. A statue of an
excited boy holding a shoe in his hands
commemorates this writer near the
building where he lived – just in front of
the Russian Drama Theater.
3.
4.
highlights
1. A wall on Literatų Street designated for writers
with connections to Vilnius or Lithuania.
2. A commemorative plate for Ričardas Gavelis.
3. The Narutis Hotel described by Ričardas Gavelis.
4. Plates for the writers Jurgis Kunčius and Jurga
Ivanauskaitė.
5. The Cat - a monument to Jurga Ivanauskaitė by
Ksenija Jaroševaitė.
6. The monument to Romain Gary’s play First Love
by Romas Kvintas.
1.
5.
6.
diversity
Religious and cultural diversity is
undoubtedly one of the most important
sources of Vilnius creativity. Its
architecture varies from Eastern to
Western in influence, from Gothic to
Baroque in style, and from the 14th
century to present-day contemporary in
design. Historically, Vilnius was always a
meeting point between the Western and
Eastern Christian worlds. Ethnic groups
such as the Karaites and the Tatars have
called Vilnius their home for more than
six centuries.
Large communities of Russians, Poles,
and Belarusians are essential elements
of today’s Vilnius. The Romantic poet
Adomas Mickevičius (Adam Mickiewicz)
is symbolic of Vilnius diverse and
complex cultural background because
he is important to the cultures of three
nations – Poland, Lithuania, and Belarus.
Vilnius hosts the most important
festivals of traditional culture in
Lithuania. The National Song and Dance
festival is included in UNESCO’s list of
Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible
Heritage of Humanity, and it can be
called a celebration of the diversity
of all the ethnographic regions of
Lithuania. The same can be said about
the festival Skamba Skamba Kankliai
and about the Saint Casimir’s Fair that
fills the streets of Vilnius Old Town
every March.
highlights
1. The Roman Catholic
Church of St. Anne.
2. The Eastern Catholic
(Uniat) Church of the Holy
Trinity.
3. The Karaite Kenesa.
4. The National Song and
Dance festival.
5. The monument to
Adomas Mickevičius.
6, 7, 8. Street festivals
celebrating ethnic culture.
1.
2.
3.
5.
6.
7.
4.
8.
memories
The constantly evolving cultural land­scape
of this city is catalyzed and flavored by its
memories. Vilnius cannot be appreciated
without noticing the rich cultural strata
that no longer exist. Once one of the
most important centers of Jewish culture
in the world, Vilnius used to be called
the Jerusalem of the North. This city
was once the home of no fewer than one
hundred thousand Jews, who comprised
almost 45 percent of Vilnius population.
The eminent Jewish theologian and
Talmudist Elijah ben Shlomo Zalman,
known as the Vilna Gaon, lived and was
active in Vilnius during the second half
of the 18th century. He was esteemed
as one of the world’s greatest thinkers.
Vilnius had the biggest synagogue in
the region, called the Great Synagogue
of Vilna, which was surrounded by no
fewer than one hundred Jewish houses of
prayer. The extraordinarily high level of
Jewish religious studies is illustrated by
the fact that there were three hundred
Talmudists in Vilnius who knew the Holy
Scriptures by heart. The loss of Jewish
culture and of almost the entire Jewish
population during the Second World War
is undoubtedly the greatest tragedy in
the history of the city.
One of the main streets of Vilnius –
Gedimino Avenue is an apt symbol of the
memories of the city, reflecting different
periods of its history and different
political regimes. Its name was changed
many times: it was called Šv. Jurgio
(St. George’s) Avenue under the Russian
Empire, Adomo Mickevičiaus Street (ulica
Mickiewicza) under Polish rule, and
Lenino Avenue during Soviet times.
highlights
1. The monument to the Vilna Gaon at the site of the
Great Synagogue of Vilna.
2. Gedimino Avenue with the Mother of God Orthodox
Church in the background.
1.
2.
freedom
Vilnius was the cradle of the singing
revolution that re-established the
independence of Lithuania in 1990.
Even today, vestiges of the Soviet
regime are abundant in the streets
and squares of Vilnius. The Sovietstyle statues on the Green Bridge are
the leading examples of the bulky,
ideologically loaded Soviet visual style.
In this context, some places became
symbolical precursors of freedom.
The underground culture of jazz music
once had a haven at the Neringa Café,
which has been lately reconstructed
in the style of the last decade of the
twentieth century.
Although the first monument in the
world to the American rock star Frank
Zappa has always been regarded as a
certain Vilnius extravagance, it is also a
clear sign of the importance of Western
popular culture to Lithuania when it was
still behind the Iron Curtain. Zappa’s
legend was symbolically continued
when a copy of this statue was donated
to the city of Baltimore in 2010.
2.
highlights
1. The Neringa Café on Gedimino Avenue.
2. The monument to Frank Zappa, created by
Konstantinas Bogdanas.
3. An example of the Stalinist architectural
style.
4. The Soviet sculptures on the Green Bridge.
1.
3.
4.
contemporary art
Daring and provocative, sometimes
extremely controversial, but seldom
boring and unnoticed, contemporary
art and culture are at the very heart
of the present-day life of Vilnius.
The Contemporary Art Center, which
is situated in the middle of the Old
Town, just around the corner from the
Town Hall, is among the most dynamic
and internationally connected venues
for contemporary art exhibitions in
the region. The National Art Gallery,
which was opened in 2009 after full
reconstruction of premises that had
formerly been devoted to a Soviet
museum of revolution, is one of the
most progressive art museums in
Vilnius, featuring both a perspective
on recent national art history and a
wide range of temporary thematic
exhibitions. Vilnius is associated with
Jurgis Mačiūnas (George Maciunas)
and Jonas Mekas – the New York
artists who initiated the worldfamous artistic movement Fluxus.
Other leading members of the Fluxus
community were Yoko Ono, Joseph
Beuys, George Brecht, and Nam June
Paik. Jonas Mekas, who has been
called “the godfather of American
avant-garde cinema,” is represented
in Vilnius by the recently opened
Jonas Mekas Visual Arts Center.
There are many new initiatives
launched by individuals or groups of
young artists. The Fluxus Ministry is
a lively place for contemporary art
exhibitions in premises on Gedimino
Avenue, where the Ministry of
Health Care was once located.
Another popular place for various
contemporary art projects is Kultflux
– an improvised open-air arena on
the bank of the Neris River in front
of the Mindaugas Bridge. Widely
discussed, the Embankment Arch
was erected as one of the projects of
the program Vilnius – the European
Capital of Culture. It is one of the
best examples of a contemporary
art initiative as a cultural and social
provocation.
highlights
1. The Embankment Arch.
2. The Portrait of Jurgis Mačiūnas
in Užupis.
3. The Kultflux Arena.
4. The Fluxus Ministry.
5. The National Art Gallery.
6. The Jonas Mekas Visual Arts
Center.
7. The Contemporary Art Center.
1.
2.
3.
6.
4.
5.
7.
performance
highlights
1, 2, 3. Dance performances at the
National Opera House.
4, 5. The contemporary music
festival Gaida.
2.
3.
1.
4.
Vilnius was once called the victim of a national
pandemic of festivalization. This means that artistic
performances, events, and places of public interaction
are essential elements of Vilnius contemporary cultural
life. Drama theater performances by leading Lithuanian
directors Oskaras Koršunovas and Eimuntas Nekrošius,
the Christopher Festival of classical music, concerts,
and performances at the National Opera House and the
National Philharmonic are complemented with more
5.
eccentric events like the contemporary dance festival
New Baltic Dance, the Vilnius international theater
festival Sirenos, and the contemporary music festival
Gaida. At the other extreme, opener and more socially
oriented performances and festivals are organized
like the Street Music Day, which invites everybody to
express him - or herself by playing any available musical
instrument in a public place. Culture Night: Let There Be
Night! calls everybody to participate in cultural events
organized around the city all night long. A number of
jazz music festivals and an international short film
festival “Tinklai” should be added to the list. There are,
indeed, few aspects of Vilnius life that are not expressed
by some kind of festival.
creative communities
The regeneration of Užupis is one
of the most significant cultural and
social transformations to take place
in Vilnius during the last twenty years.
A historical district of craftsmen
and traders, Užupis became a place
of artistic inspiration and social,
cultural, and ecological innovationts.
According to the Mapping Document
of Creative Industries of Užupis, there
are more than 200 creative businesses,
organizations, and artists active in this
district. Other neighborhoods in Vilnius
have been inspired by Užupis and have
started their own initiatives to foster
feelings of belonging to a community.
Thus, the Newtown Revolution was
launched to transform the New Town
district. The organization BEEPART
started its activities in Pilaitė, which
is a new outlying district of Vilnius.
A number of such organizations are
trying to foster social integration,
the development of local community
identities, and interaction among
them.
2.
highlights
1. The Statue of an Egg – a symbol of
birth and regeneration. This statue
once belonged to the community of
Užupis but was later moved to the
Old Town.
2. A view of the Užupis district
with metal plates of the text of the
Constitution of the Republic of Užupis
in 9 languages.
3. Autumn in Užupis.
4. An improvised scene during the
festival Street Music Day.
5. The Statue of an Angel in Užupis.
1.
3.
creative communities
4.
5.
2.
1.
Either strolling down the dense network of small
curved medieval streets in Vilnius Old Town or
walking along Konstitucijos Avenue surrounded
by rows of new buildings on the right side of
the Neris River, one will never feel confined
or claustrophobic. Open public areas like
Sereikiškės and Vingis parks, both sides of the
Neris River, the hills near the Vilnia River, views
from the Hill of Three Crosses or from Gediminas
Tower open vast vistas and wide perspectives
for the eyes of the observer to wander. These
open green spaces not only satisfy the natural
highlights
1. Green spaces around Vilnius Old Town.
2. A view from the terrace of Swedbank.
3. In Sereikiškės Park.
4. The Festival of Kites near the White Bridge.
3.
green spaces
human desire to look at long distances but also create channels for
communication. Green areas invite people to share their feelings of joy
and celebration in open-air festivals and feasts. A good example of such
social interaction is the Summer Festival of Kites, which occupies all the
green space on the right bank of the Neris River.
4.
further references
general information
performing arts
www.vilnius.lt
www.vilnius-tourism.lt
culturelive.vilnius.lt
www.lithuania-photo.com/vilniuscentras
www.vilnius-life.com
lietuva.lt
www.viv.lt
www.vilniusbynight.lt
www.teatras.lt
www.jaunimoteatras.lt
www.vmt.lt
www.opera.lt
www.menofortas.lt
www.okt.lt
www.ach.lt
www.rusudrama.lt
www.menuspaustuve.lt
www.menufaktura.lt
www.dance.lt
www.theatre.lt
museums and galleries
www.lnm.lt
www.ldm.lt
www.valdovurumai.lt
www.cac.lt
www.ndg.lt
www.mekas.lt
www.jmuseum.lt
www.europosparkas.lt
ic.ndg.lt
www.arkagalerija.lt
www.galerijavartai.lt
film and cinema
www.lfc.lt
www.skalvija.lt
www.kinopasaka.lt
www.tinklai.net
www.lfs.lt
concert halls
www.filharmonija.lt
www.lvso.lt
www.piano.lt
creative communites
www.beepart.lt
www.uzupiozinios.lt
www.umi.lt
www.newtownrevolution.lt
literature
literatugatve.lt
www.booksfromlithuania.lt
www.ce-review.org/00/27/jarvis27.html
www.kuncinas.com
www.rasytojai.lt
www.kirjasto.sci.fi/mickie.htm
ethnic culture and cultural diversity
www.dainusvente.lt
www.llkc.lt
www.karaim.eu/index.php?id=2&lang=en
www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/vjw/Vilnius.html
fluxus and avanguard
www.mekas.lt
colophon.com/umbrella/emmet.html
www.youtube.com/watch?gl=US&hl=uk&v=hjbyN-IUUlA
www.youtube.com/watch?gl=US&feature=related&hl=uk&v=SofH0I0qERw
www.youtube.com/watch?gl=US&feature=related&hl=uk&v=z2QaUltkLwI
www.ubu.com/film/fluxfilm.html
jonasmekasfilms.com/diary/
www.fluxusministerija.lt/fluxus-ministerija-english.html
www.kultflux.lt/Apie.aspx
Click on the Google map to take
a virtual trip through Creative Vilnius
www.vilnius.lt/creativevilnius.pdf
music
www.mic.lt
www.vilniusfestivals.lt
www.kristupofestivaliai.lt
www.mjr.lt
www.gatvesmuzika.lt
www.b2g.lt
www.sutemos.net
www.vilniusjazz.lt
www.vilniuscityjazz.lt
www.noa.lt
Vilnius City Municipality, 2011
more information
Coordinator of Creative Metropoles Project
in Vilnius, responsible for CI strategic
recommendations
Telephone +370 5 211 2413
Fax +370 5 211 2396
veronika.jaruseviciute@vilnius.lt
Veronika Jaruševičiūtė
Deputy Coordinator, responsible
for analysis of CI urban development
Telephone +370 5 211 2516
Fax +370 5 211 2517
ruta.matoniene@vilnius.lt
Expert for CI internationalisation and
international networking
Telephone +370 5 211 2874
Fax + 370 5 211 2331
ina.irens@vilnius.lt
Rūta Matonienė
Ina Irens
Expert for Project communication
Telephone +370 5 211 2320
Fax +370 5 211 2325
ruta.dirsiene@vilnius.lt
Financial Manager
Rūta Dirsienė
Telephone +370 5 211 2394
Fax +370 5 211 2420
laima.rinkeviciene@vilnius.lt
Laima Rinkevičienė
Expert for Project monitoring
Telephone +370 5 211 2008
Fax +370 5 211 2025
onute.adulcikiene@vilnius.lt
Onutė Adulčikienė
Vilnius city municipality 2011
VILNIUS CITY MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION
Konstitucijos pr. 3, LT-09601 VILNIUS
Tel: +370 5 211 2413, fax: +370 5 211 2364
kulturos@vilnius.lt
www.vilnius.lt
Even though Vilnius is home to almost 60 percent of the entire Lithuanian Creative
Economy, its creativity cannot be reduced to simple economic and social statistics
Vilnius is creative because it inspires its people to create