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In an interview given this week at 3 pm, the artist was delighted that, in his own words, “the artist’s work has finally reached its destination. It was 21 years before him. It turns out that part of the nation is still immature and easily succumbs to political manipulation. And this is the saddest thing, because it is they who are currently using my work of art to incite discord and hatred in society ”.
We invite you to read the text of the circulated statement, which has been signed by more than two dozen creative organizations, galleries, museums and other creative communities that bring artists together.
VIDEO: MO collection. Dainius Liškevičius, Kliaksas / Restartas
The President of the Republic of Lithuania,
The Government, the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania,
Prosecutor’s Office and Police Department
2021 06 17
We declare that the pre-trial investigation launched into the desecration of state symbols in a work of art represents a threat to the principle of freedom of expression enshrined in the Constitution of Lithuania and the functioning of cultural institutions in Lithuania.
The prosecution, which accepted the accusation of the artist Dainis Liškevičius by the police, intends to explain if he is an artist and if his performance “Kliaksas / Restartas” is a work of art.
There is no reason to explain this, because Dainius Liškevičius is a renowned artist. after receiving a Master of Arts, and in 2012. In 1995 he obtained the Most Interesting Young Artist Diploma at the “Pan y Sal” Exhibition organized by the Center for Contemporary Art. He obtained a second degree diploma from the Cité internationale des arts de Paris, 2003. Awarded the Antanas Mončys Prize, he is a member of the Union of Interdisciplinary Art of Lithuania, 2015. He represented Lithuania in the most important art forum in the world: the Venice Art Biennale, creating scenery for theatrical performances, teaching art at the Vilnius Academy of Arts and the MK Čiurlionis National School of Arts, with the status of artist defined by law. private museums.
The work for which he is accused, in 2000. exhibited at the Centro de Arte Contemporáneo, 2012. – National Gallery of Art, mentioned at the Venice Art Biennale, 2019. – at the MO Museum and adding to its collection. All this in the cultural system that works according to the laws of the Republic of Lithuania, as well as according to the international principles of functioning of the cultural field, means that “Kliaksas / Restartas” is a work of art, and Dainius Liškevičius is an artist. .
With this work of art, 21 years ago, the author raised the question of what the Lithuanian state will be like in the future, whether it will be able to accept the national, racial and other diversity of its citizens. It does not desecrate the national flag, nor pollute it, but rather cleanses the face like Christ, tormented by Pontius Pilate, cleanses his face on the cloth of Turin. As a result, the shroud of action became sacred, just as the Lithuanian flag, which supports all transformations of the state, becomes sacred.
Also, during the performance, the artist acted not as Dainius Liškevičius, but as a fictional character, as well as characters representing fictional or historical characters in theater and cinema. This character wears a suit that we recognize as a common citizen-official who adapts to any circumstance in order to survive. A citizen-civil servant who lived and worked in the Soviet system, wiping his face, becomes another person in a tricolor, that is, he changes his mask and adapts to the new conditions of life in free Lithuania.
It is likely that the organizers of the Family March, who complained to the artist, recognized themselves in the figure of this character. However, the most important thing is that the artist represents a fictional reality in the work in the same way that it is represented in movies or theatrical performances. In other words, the prosecution and the police blame the actor and the director for the portrayed actions of the fictional character. It is not difficult to predict that if this pre-trial investigation continues, there is a danger that actors and directors who have ever acted in films and performances made in Lithuania may be prosecuted under the same article of the Penal Code.
Such a situation would be absurd, but also threatening. This prosecution process not only causes psychological and economic damage to the artist, but also to the entire Lithuanian art system. The laws are shown not to work and without someone understanding the artwork, the artist loses the identity of the artist and possibly also the freedom established by the laws of the Republic of Lithuania and the recognition of cultural institutions.
Furthermore, the statutory functions of the institutions that guarantee the functioning of the art system are denied as insignificant and ineffective. So the sole arbiter who decides who is a work of art and who is an artist becomes a law enforcement system lacking competence in the field of art. It is a dangerously unstable situation in which there is no place for artistic creation.
The freedom of expression of an artist is not guaranteed by the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania. Always thinking that any action can displease someone and become an accuser in court is impossible to create. Furthermore, the control and censorship of artistic content is a hallmark of a totalitarian system. Lithuania abandoned that system in 1990. the Act of Independence of March 11, signed by the signatories at the will of the nation. This cannot be reversed with the decision of a relatively small crowd of dissatisfied people, and applicable laws must be followed, according to which art institutions, each in the exercise of their functions, decide who is an artist and what is art. .
By taking charge of these decisions, the police system violates the principle of institutional autonomy and imposes its incompetent decisions on who is art and who is an artist, in addition to restricting the freedom of artistic creation.
Therefore, we demand the immediate termination of the pre-trial investigation of Dainius Liškevičius, which has no legal basis, and a guarantee that such a practice will never happen again.
Signed by:
Vilnius Academy of Art
Union of Photographic Artists of Lithuania
Contemporary Art Center
Lithuanian Union of Interdisciplinary Art Creators
Lithuanian Artists Union
Lithuanian Section of the International Association of Art Critics AICA
Kaunas 2022 Public Institution
Vytautas Magnus University, Faculty of Arts
Art Park Gallery
Lithuanian National Art Museum
Šiauliai art gallery
Union of cinematographers of Lithuania
MO Museum
Lithuanian Artists Association
Lithuanian Design Union
Association of Cultural Magazines
Feed gallery
National Museum of Art MK Čiurlionis
Klaipeda County Artists Union
Klaipeda Cultural Community
National Association of Creative and Cultural Industries
Lithuanian Association of Art Galleries
Art niche gallery
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