How do we feel in our city? Which spaces are ours, where do we feel at home, and where do we find ourselves uncomfortable, and why? Is it more comfortable at Akropolis or the public library? Who is building our city? How do we do it?
During this three-day workshop-camp, participants explored privacy and publicity issues in the context of Kaunas city through a variety of creative practices. By discussing, travelling, photographing, reading, drawing and constructing site-specific installations, participants had the opportunity to explore, through art, the emotional climate created by places and people, and their relationship to the city. While travelling around various places that are not easily accessible to all, attempts were made to redraw the boundaries, attitudes and personal space where unspoken rules seem to be established and immovable. Together we attempted to explore public spaces and the symbols that mark them, discuss the rights we have in those spaces and why we sometimes feel in a city as if we do not belong, and how to change it.
During the workshops held on September 6-8, walks were organized to observe and discuss the contrasts, historical details and current processes of Kaunas. In addition, photographing and filming assignments were carried out. Kaunas Artists’ House’s spaces accommodated experiments with different materials. Participants made objects and drawings bringing their own ideas to life with the help of workshop mentors. This part of the workshop ended with a creative intervention in the city where the participants left their marks in its spaces.
The workshop culminated with the personal space topic and its visualization by creating temporary site-specific objects and, of course, having a cosy concluding discussion with refreshments.
Workshop was conducted by:
Anastasia Sosunova (1993) is a visual artist based in Vilnius. Her work includes sculpture, video art, graphics and contemplates the concepts of “stranger” and “other,” and the space they occupy in our daily lives. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in graphic art, received a Master of Arts degree in sculpture from the Vilnius Academy of Fine Arts, was a participant in Rupert’s alternative education program, and became the JCDecaux Prize winner in 2018. She has participated in group exhibitions in different European countries, China and the US, exhibiting works in art institutions as well as urban and natural spaces. Since 2016, Anastasia has been engaged in contemporary art education, conducting workshops for groups of children and youth of different ages.
Asta Volungė (1985) curator of Kaunas Artists’ House’s educational program has a Bachelor’s Degree in painting from Vilnius Academy of Fine Arts, Kaunas Faculty and in alternative pedagogy (DNS, Denmark) as well as experience working with socially vulnerable youth in Denmark. She continued her studies in interdisciplinary master’s program in gender studies (Linkoping, Sweden), is working on gender equality, social justice, and social art and culture projects.