[ad_1]
Against the tide
S.Paukštys in 1982 is considered one of the most prominent representatives of Lithuanian postmodern photography. came from Vilnius to Kaunas to study. True, not photography, but engineering at the then Kaunas Polytechnic Institute. After meeting G. Stulgaitis, who is several years older, he immersed himself in photography. G.Stulgaitis was working as a photographer at the zoo at the time, where he had his own photo lab. It settled in an administrative garden building at the end of a long corridor. Next to it was a cabinet with the inscription “Predators Section”, which is how the innovators of photography were later named.
“The auditoriums of our institute were very close to the Zoo, during the lectures I even heard the roar of lions. At the first opportunity I traveled to Gintautas to his laboratory. “Later, he introduced me to Arūnas Kulikauskas, who had already graduated from the Academy of Arts and directed the photographic studio of the Palace of Trade Union Culture in Kaunas. We were discussing, experimenting, drinking wine … Later, V. Dragūnas appeared on my horizon, he also had a photography lab at the Academy of Agriculture and ran photography classes for the students.
All the members of this group were true experimenters, unwilling to aim for the unshakable limits of photography at the time. His works were often more reminiscent of graphics or painting than photography. Because predators did not shy away from the use of non-photographic means: paint or glue, airbrushes, various chemical reagents, they sometimes even lashed the edges of photographs with fire. S.Paukštys liked to decorate his works with colors and, at first glance, they look like unrelated drawings.
“At that time, the Photography Society, later the Photographic Artists Union, promoted this genre of reporting. In our eyes, there was workmanship with wide-angle optics, not art. S.Paukštys – We didn’t want to flow with that main wave, so we came up with all kinds of experiments: we painted the pictures, sprayed them with chemicals, burned the corners. A rebellion, or perhaps simply an expression of a different position than usual? It looked bold at the time, but from a modern point of view, there was nothing very drastic there. “
While famous photographers were photographing basketball players, we captured chickens in my grandmother’s kitchen or a cat that she took home.
Magic reality
As all five clearly stood out from the context of the photography at the time, it also received ridicule and criticism. Sometimes artists were even prevented from participating in exhibitions. However, S.Paukštys assured that he did not take all this too much into account.
“Perhaps he would have reacted more painfully if the critics had tried to offend us, or at least seriously disputed his words. But the criticism was quite abstract. Ruda: how can they photograph differently than usual? Or what’s here in the photography? words, or perhaps I simply did not pay attention to them. Our ideological leader was A. Kulikauskas, so perhaps the arrows of criticism hindered him more “, considered the interlocutor.
Predators occasionally participated in joint exhibitions with other artists. But most of the time, they themselves devised spaces where they could display their work and hold informal meetings. Sometimes they organized exhibitions in the corridors of the institutions in agreement with their benevolent managers. And sometimes they also managed to break into official exhibition halls. Soon, and among the representatives of “fair” photography, photographers began to find photographers who liked non-traditional genres and other forms of expression.
“It seems to me that our eccentricity has become a kind of catalyst for the development of a different kind of photography. Of course, it would have developed that way, but I think we also caused some impact,” smiles the photographer.
Reproduced singularity
According to the interlocutor, at that time the photo reportage was everywhere. Sometimes there was even the impression that the author of most of the works was the same person. The fact that popular artists printed many copies of their works was also unacceptable to photographic innovators.
Saulius Birds. Fontanas (1987). / MO Collection
“The Society of Photographic Artists loved participating in various amateur competitions because it was a member of the European Association of Amateur Photographers. That is why its photographers submitted their works to competitions in Hungary, Poland, Germany, the Czech Republic and other countries. Each one brought ten or twenty copies “After graduating from Kaunas and returning to Vilnius, I got a job in this society. I remember that even those boxes were stacked in the Art Council room, in Budapest, in Warsaw, etc. All copies were distributed to them. For example, the famous “Portrait of a Pioneer” by A.Sutkus probably received several hundred identical copies. And we wanted our works to be exclusive, unique and impossible to reproduce. “
Therefore, the innovators tried to add a personal stroke to each photograph: draw or write something, color it, paste it. S.Paukštys himself liked to mount photographs from various negatives. He printed them on a single sheet, so the mixed images created a magical spectacle. Sometimes artists also used paints – aniline, textiles, to color fragments of photographs. However, there was no single creative method. The photographers tried not to repeat themselves and try something new each time.
“When someone came up with it, they did it too,” says S.Paukštys. The fact that the young people did not make any profit also helped the five to stick with their ideas. Photographers created just to fulfill their visions. And the Society of Photographic Artists carried out large commissions. For example, it printed civil defense posters for the entire Soviet Union.
“Of course, artists were not allowed to receive such orders, there was a separate production department. Therefore, it must be admitted that the leaders of the society at that time were good managers, they converted the business even under the Soviet regime, while developing artistic activity, “said S.Paukštys.
Stay alert
Compared to previous decades, in the creative sense, the 1980s were much freer. Although there were certain dogmas in photography, it was possible to ignore them. However, the artists could not lose their vigilance either. There were really more stresses in everyday life than now.
Saulius Birds. Foje Collection (1984) / MO
“During my studies I was arrested for photographing a military object. The building did not have a special appearance, but the militiamen reported that it could not be photographed. “Poultry”. A. Kulikauskas was also arrested several times. He also photographed something unauthorized, or maybe the police didn’t like it anyway. “
According to the interlocutor, the predators did not politicize in their photographs. However, some reflections on social issues could be seen in his work. “If the image of a ramshackle cat hangs in the exhibition, it can lead to ambiguous thoughts. On the one hand, maybe it is just a cat. On the other hand, it can be a secret protest against the social situation or the Soviet routine,” he explained . limits, but also to reveal unadorned Soviet life, the futility of this everyday life, absurd details. However, there was certainly no open rebellion, the viewer had to think, put all the points himself. “1987 After graduating from high school, S.Paukštys returned to Vilnius. Later he began to work for the Union of Photographic Artists, but Nor did he abandon his work. The predators who remained in Kaunas were active for some time. Sometimes S.Paukštys joined them. However, in 1990 when A. Kulikauskas left for the United States, the group collapsed.
Saulius Birds. Triptych (1984) / MO collection
In captivity of freedoms
According to S.Paukštis, today the concept of rebellion and protest has changed; It’s not always clear what today’s photographers are rebelling against when there are so many freedoms around. “If someone has a rebellious nature, he can take drastic photographs in some way, choose an exceptional artistic expression. Still, I don’t know what would be so drastic and exceptionally unexpected these days,” thinks the interlocutor. “Nobody from above tells you how to take photos. Today, the problem may be more bureaucratic relationships, disagreements between artists, conflicts with the administration of the creative union, the cultural council or the like. But these problems will not be avoided anywhere.”
We didn’t want to flow with that main wave, so we came up with all sorts of experiments – we painted the photos, sprayed them with chemicals, burned the corners.
Comparing current photography and that of then, S.Paukštys notes the most advanced technical possibilities. Digital photography can be adjusted however you like, and the shooting itself is much simpler and faster. “In our time a lot of creative thinking was needed. How to implement your ideas when the technical possibilities are extremely limited? You had to be an artist, inventor, designer and engineer to implement any creative idea,” he recalled the difficulties and curiosities of the eighties. .
[ad_2]
