A cozy hill, lovingly clinging to a chosen patch of land, dreamt, named. The most mysterious Vilnius – at night, calm, wrapped in the ribbons of the river, the rustling treetops, memories of the past, dreams of the future.
Bronze, brass, silver, oak
A necklace the High Priest used to wear when people came to consult him. The letters were the answers to their questions.
Stainless steel
Continuously exploring the qualities of substances, the nature of the matter itself. In this case magnets show a considerable potential, which is power and mystery. Or the beauty of the rusty iron. To investigate for so long and so intensively that, in the result, the effort put forth would be unnoticeable. I think small forms can Express ideas as eloquently as the big ones. Spontaneous creativity – without any preconceived ideas of what could or should be there. Spontaneity is then followed by expediency.
Iron, rust, nail, magnet
The work ASCENSION is intended to be a symbol of the development of the city of Vilnius. The sculptural composition made of a polished stainless material embodied the bright rhythm that shapes the essence. On its turn, the composition sculpts the light, thus we watch, overwhelmed, the miracle of light, which it does not reverberate or capture. It uses it to float in space and let itself be polished in order to return to life in the light that generates the form and the spring of creative ascension.
Stainless steel on wood
It is more than twenty five years now that I have been a goldsmith in Modena, Italy. Since I was a young man, I’ve been interested and attracted to metals and it’s infinite potential, especially that of overlapping, oxidation, and sequences of layers. In my work, I try to transfer every day emotions into contemporary jewelry and unique pieces in a simple, informal and spontaneous way. This allows me to develop new situations and the art appreciators can derive feelings from these situations. My goal is to move from the concept of simple jewelry, to a larger concept of sculpture and art piece.
I use antique and unique goldsmith techniques, such as NIELLO and GRANULATION, personalizing them in order to distinguish my work from others. I work with precious metals combining them with other metals such as iron, copper and brass. My jewelry is usually finished by material textured, which hides to the naked eye the precious metals. As a painter uses his canvas to express his or her feelings, I use my jewelry as base for expressing mine.
Sidabras, auksas, oksidacija, lavos akmuo
My works are inspired by thoughts on the relationship between man and nature and expressive possibilities it offers: colors evoking feelings and thoughts, sounds, the life cycle from birth to death, mysteries and secrets in the world of nature. I like to awaken consciousness, to evoke thoughts and feelings, to try and destroy the superficiality and individualism prevalent in modern men and women. My works are here for you to look at, to experience, to make you think and share.
Silver, pigments, resin, organic, amber
The work “Form”, with its intuitiveness, atectonicity, and contingency, acts as a complement to the pragmatism and rationality of the city.
Aluminium, silver, copper, enamel
In my collection I present a set of brooches which allude to the metaphor of knot. The brooches, connecting two different perspectives and substances, consist of two parts. A metal cast knot represents the powerful past that gave the city its superb character and atmosphere. The original knot, made of fabric, has become hard and stiff after being cast in metal and can no longer be undone. In contrast against the symbol of the past, there stands a cotton rope, which is fully flexible and soft. Its open structure represents the new, changing vibe of Vilnius. In the both parts of the brooches I used the same material, the cotton rope, which became a pattern for metal casting and the basic substance for the soft part of the brooches.
Silver black patina, brass-gold plated-black patina, aluminium-black patina
A very clear and precise position has been taken in Lithuania. Therefore, in our lexicon a word “poker“ is always preceded by a word „sport“. In my country the sport poker is considered a sport. It has been recognized by the Sport Department and its rules are very clear. The first rule: it is not played for money. On no account should money be a part of the game. Therefore, poker can be played outside of casinos. It is not a gambling game. We can play it right here, in the club, or, if we wish, we can play it in spa, etc.
Andrius Tapinas
A very clear and precise position has been taken in Lithuania. Therefore, in our lexicon a word „poker“ is always preceded by a word „art“. In my country the art poker is considered as art. It has been recognized by the Ministry of Culture and its rules are very clear. The first rule: it is not played for money. On no account should money be a part of the game. Therefore, the art poker can be played outside of galleries. It is not a gambling game. We can play it right here, in the studio, or, if we wish, we can play it in Maxima, etc.
E. L.
Copper, silver, gold plating, hammering
Mother is seeing off the family of her son to a distant country. Her heart keeps vigil, sends prayer and blessings. Stories like that can happen in any era in any country, but each of them has a personal undertone, bears specific signs and leaves distinctive footprints. A lot of people pass through the Gates of Dawn in Vilnius.
Mammoth ivory, silver, gold, sapphires, garnets
Seen from above
And felt when pleasantly lost
In its cross roads, corners…
Wondering the streets.
“You are here“ says the city map,
This is where the heart is
And with all that it carries.
Silver
Millionaires and the homeless always reside in the old town… This is where all of us – from a gorgeous gentleman to a homeless cat – satisfy our thirst.
Silver, amber
Brass is a swashbuckling substance. Works made of it outlive their makers.
Brass
For the children of the post-war generation, which I belong to, the favorite theme of games was war and fighting, where „good guys“ struggled with „bad guys“. My keen childhood interest in making toy soldiers has lasted to a respectable age. Actually, the plasticine toy soldiers have now become bronze heroes representing the most crucial military campaigns which decided the fate of our nation. An artwork, with no clear-cut beginning, can be dated from 1954 to 2010.
Bronze, aluminium
In the sun, glasses shine, everyone is truly fine.
Plexiglas, silver
Brooches.
We draw inspiration from decaying forms, the vanishing and appearing sharpness of edges that result from the lengthy contact of a flowing muddy water with a hard material. Random remnants, polished by time, become increasingly convex, similarly to cosmic bodies affected by gravity: forces of nature re-created and take human reality.
Ceramic fragment found in Vilnele, silver, gold
I guess the city of Vilnius as my jewelry: Preserving the idea‘s indwelling light, through the delicate process of transforming the raw materials into jewel, without dispelling the idea‘s own aura, has never been as easy mission to accomplish for any artisan goldsmith, even if the technical procedure is actually quite simple. The feature of interchangeability of the complementary elements composing these jewels, obtained by using integrated magnets, leads to a metamorphosis of the jewel itself, allowing her user to interact with it, while entering a playful-creative perspective which has, in our opinion, even a therapeutic purpose.
Gold, silver, coal, agate, old Murrina
When night comes, Vilnius changes, fills with mystery and one can enjoy vision and experiences.
Copper, enamel, wood
It could seem very arbitrary, but from some reason I have decided to name these specific kinds of growths as Vilnius circles, as I just discovered them through my experiments.
Glass, lead, chemicals
These are the object I come across most often as I circulate through the town. When the autumn approaches, they become places to stop in melancholy.
Silver, copper, enamel, tourmaline, amber
