19 May 2016

ArtVilnius'16 presenting an impressive panorama of Polish contemporary art

On 9-12 June, Lithuanian Exhibition and Congress Centre Litexpo will be opening the seventh edition of traditional Contemporary Art Fair ArtVilnius'16. This great event of visual arts, which is the biggest in the Baltic States, will host 57 art galleries from 11 countries presenting exclusive artistic and educational programmes.

This year, a special guest of the art fair is Poland with 10 top national art galleries and institutions on its programme. The collection of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Krakow MOCAK will be presented in Vilnius, offering a great opportunity to get to know the most prominent Polish artists. The MOCAK owns the works of such famous artists as Marina Abramovich, Sarah Lucas, Ai Weiwei, Mirosław Bałka, Paweł Althamer and Lithuanian artist Artūras Raila. Laznia Centre for Contemporary Art is bringing to the art fair the spectacular painting works by Arkadiusz Sylwestrowicz. Warsaw-based gallery Lokal_30 is going to display an intriguing exposition with presentation of the creative works by Natalia LL, one of the most scandalous artists of the world. Promising young Polish artists will be presented by Stalowa Gallery showcasing the works of 10 artists. Galeria Le Guern (Warsaw) and Galeria Zderzak (Krakow) will also be among the participants of the art fair.

'Poland has a really impressive contemporary art stage which remains undiscovered by many audiences. The Polish art market is one of the most rapidly growing markets in Central and Eastern Europe, attracting attention from numerous international collectors. The works by Polish artists to be presented at the art fair will knock down stereotypes that have taken root in society', says Diana Stomienė, directress of ArtVilnius'16.

Exhibition of sculptures, installations and performances TAKAS (PATH) will traditionally invite the visitors of the art fair to enjoy the works by 25 artists from Lithuania, Latvia, Ukraine, the Netherlands, Poland, Germany, and Denmark. This year, world's renowned artist Vladimir Tarasov, currently residing in New York, will invite ArtVilnius'16 visitors to see his new audio-visual installation. Jonas Mekas Visual Arts Centre will present an involving project – 'Generating the substance of proto-creative swarms/Converter & 3D'. The exclusive partner of the art fair, Lewben Group and its Lewben Art Foundation with curator Francesca Ferrarini (Italy) will display a collection by foreign artists entitled 'Shaping Ideas: Sculptures'.

'For the last hundred years, sculptors have been experimenting with different materials and ideas, sometimes combining abstractness and figurativeness or stepping outside the boundaries of the material and transposing the sculptural effect onto the stage. Therefore, our exposition will offer the viewers a journey over a diversity of forms of contemporary sculpture, including visual projection', comments Francesca Ferrarini, curator of the exposition of the Lewben Art Foundation.

According to Sonata Baliuckaitė, art project manager for ArtVilnius'16, every year the art fair meets around 20,000 visitors, so the programme is designed in such a way that all visitors would find something interesting for themselves. As usual, there will be the selection of the best galleries and artists, including audience award. Young visitors of the art fair are also invited to take part in educational 'Among Creators', release their creative energies and communicate with the artists.

ArtVilnius'16 opening hours:

9 June (Thursday) 3 p.m. – 8 p.m.
10 June (Friday) 11.30 a.m. – 8 p.m.
11 June (Saturday) 11.30 a.m. – 8 p.m.
12 June (Sunday) 11.30 a.m. – 6 p.m.