Marija Teresė Rožanskaitė “Grandmas and Grandpas of Country”

“We are standing in front of each other. He is my destiny, my “confessional”. Neither me,
nor him has avoided the cross wind, carrying the smell of a barn and the black soil.” Marija
Teresė Rožanskaitė.
M. T. Rožanskaitė (1933-2007) is one of the most prominent Lithuanian artists of the late
20th century. Owning a homestead in Kuršiai village, Varėna municipality – together with
her husband Igoris Piekuras, a painter – she spent a lot of time visiting neighbouring
countryside, meeting local elders, recording their stories and histories, as well as painting
countryside exteriors, which resulted in the archival cycle “Rural Architecture” (1995-2003).
“Grandmas and Grandpas of Country” is the name, written by the hand of the author on
the folder for drawn portraits of countryside people – along with their stories and histories
inscribed on the drawings.
The legacy of M. T. Rožanskaitė has witnessed a recent revival, with her works being
exposed at contemporary art exhibitions, as well as the growing interest of foreign
museums and galleries being present.
Therefore, recalling the cycle “Rural Architecture”, we present the artist to the public of the
region where she spent quite some of her lifetime. Her strong relationship with Lithuanian
countryside and the nature is one of the key topics revealed at the exhibition.

The opening of the exhibition is at 1 PM on the 25th of June
The exhibition “Grandmas and Grandpas of Country” at the Marcinkonys Station gallery
will be open from 25 June to 24 July 2022, Saturdays and Sundays, noon–5 pm.
verpejos.lt

Later, the exhibition will be available at:
The Merkinė Visitor Center Gallery “Šalcinis” – from 6 August to 1 October 2022

The Cinema and Exhibition Hall of the Varėna Cultural Centre – from 1 December to 31
December 2022
The organizer: MTR Art Foundation
The curator: Algimantas Rokas Černiauskas
The designer: Evaldas Bubinas
The supporters: the Lithuanian Council for Culture, “An Incubus, UAB”, MC Merkinė, the
Printing House “Petro ofsetas“
Partners: Všį “Verpėjos”, Merkinė visitor center gallery “Šalcinis”, Dzukija National Park
and Cepkeliai State Nature Reserve Directorate

Photo credits: Andrej Vasilenko