2 nd Vilnius Ceramic Art Biennial opens in Vilnius Arka Gallery 21 August, 2012

Ausros Vartu 7, Vilnius, Lithuania

The 2 nd Vilnius Ceramic Art Biennial having acquired acceleration based on the experiences of the

preparation of the first one. Once again autumn-embraced Vilnius invites to take a look at works of Lithuanian and foreign authors and their ceramic works of last two years.

Gradually, Biennial includes new artists, who wish to present their works here, and anywhere else. The

Selection Board (Juozas Adomonis, Živilė Bardzilauskaitė - Bergins, Eugenijus Čibinskas, Saulius Jankauskas, Rita Mikučionytė, Aldona Jonuškaitė - Šaltenienė, Gvidas Raudonius) had to work really hard, because Arka gallery of Lithuanian Artists’ Association could not hold all works, which were presented for event. One of the most important novelties of this year – visitors will be able to get acquainted with works of authors that reside outside Lithuania. Artists, who live and work in the United States of America and Canada, accepted the invitation of organizers. One of these artists is a world-wide known ceramic artist Rimas VisGirda, who was responsible for initiative to invite world-known artists to Lithuania, when country was just making its first steps towards her independence. Back then, these artists worked in former Panevėžys Glass Factory and all together with Lithuanian ceramists, they embodied the idea of International Ceramics Symposium. As a result, the funds of Panevėžys City Art Gallery have accumulated a unique collection of  world ceramics.

An interesting coincidence – Alvydas Pakarklis, another initiator of mentioned Ceramic Symposiums and

former artist of Panevėžys Glass factory, who now lives in America, is also participating with his works in

Vilnius Biennial. In addition, we are glad that this exhibition has triggered a wave of interest among other

Lithuanian-related artists, such as Nora Aušrienė, who graduated her studies of ceramics in Vilnius and now lives in America or Canadian-born Reed Weir, whose mother was a Lithuanian sculptor Elena Žebrauskaitė Weir which works we may find in the corpus of Lithuanian Art Museum .

Another novelty of this Biennial is the uncompetitive art collection of works of the members of the Selection board. It gives us an opportunity to assess the creative potential of its members. After all, the board has not only “sifted” the provided works, but also, it has undertaken to select the laureates of Biennial.

In 2010, a winner of award of professor Liudvikas Strolis (1905–1996), a father of the professional ceramics, was granted for ceramist from Panevėžys, Egidijus Radvenskas; therefore, on this year, he presents a separate exposition of his works, and also, other artists, who were granted a diploma for their works in last Biennial, two years ago, can also present their works without any pre-selections.

Continuing the traditions of the first Biennial, we also have an exhibition of works of the students of Bachelor and Master Degrees of the Ceramics Study Programmes, who study in Vilnius Art Academy and its Kaunas Faculty of Arts. Even though, these works of students express a wish to keep in pace with tendencies of world art, they also reflect the classical idea of revealing inborn qualities of material and to using them in ceramics in a creative way.

Curator of Biennial , Artist Gvidas Raudonius