Birutė Lemke. Exhibition “Settlers X”
In Dzūkija, newcomers who settle in the area are called užeiviai (settlers). Even if you come from a neighboring village, if you’re not a local, you’re considered a settler. I moved to the small village of Žiogeliai, located in the Dzūkija National Park, in 2023. We came from Vilnius, and my husband and I became yet another pair of settlers.
I observe the village people – settlers are now almost the majority here. I communicate with other newcomers to Dzūkija; quite a few are artists. I try to integrate – I set up a studio in a former garage with white cube walls, filled with all my books. I practice yoga. We celebrate holidays.
I watch my neighbor slaughter a pig. I observe the tomato jungles growing in the greenhouse. I draw parallels between the greenhouse made from wooden frames, which I once built for my exhibition “Hortifiction” at Panemunė Castle, and the “horti-reality” now (horti – Latin for garden). I explore the impressive remnants of the Žiogeliai sawmill.
When setting up my studio, I had some nice small planks left over from building a bookshelf. I decided that the best way to integrate would be to express my settler reflections on these leftover bookshelf planks.
This is my first solo exhibition in Dzūkija – held at the Marcinkonys Station. The gallery at the station also feels somewhat like a settler, which is why I painted it as well. Dzūkija’s forests are easily reachable by train from Vilnius and feel familiar, well-known.
Moving from the village to the city is common, but what about the reverse – moving from asphalt back to molehills?
I try to understand what transformation is happening, what change is occurring – but really, I simply observe with open eyes and record it.
I belong to the generation officially marked by the unknown “X” (Generation X). Through painting, I attempt to explore these unknowns who have become settlers.
Birutė Lemke (b. 1975, Vilnius) graduated from Vilnius University’s Faculty of Economics in 1997. In 2022, she earned a Master’s degree in Painting from the Vilnius Academy of Arts. In 2021, she completed a residency at the Academy of Fine Arts in Prague. Since 2010, she has actively participated in exhibitions and artistic projects, organizing personal exhibitions. She has been a member of the Lithuanian Interdisciplinary Artists’ Association since 2022. Since 2023, she has been living and creating in Žiogeliai, between Merkinė and Druskininkai. In 2025, she was awarded a grant by the Lithuanian Council for Culture.
birutelemke.com
Organized by: VšĮ “Verpėjos”
Supported by: Lithuanian Council for Culture
Exhibition dates: May 10 – June 8, 2025
Visiting hours: Saturdays and Sundays, 12:00–5:00 PM, or by prior arrangement at +370 614 16255.
Address: Marcinkonys Station Gallery, Kastinio St. 1C
verpejos.lt