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“Man and Fish”, a group show of Lithuanian and French artists, has opened at M.K. Čiurlionis National Museum under the initiative of the contemporary art gallery “Menų tiltas”. Apart from marking the centennial anniversary of the M.K. Čiurlionis National Museum, the show is dedicated to the memory of the Lithuanian painter and composer Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis (1875–1911) who died 120 years ago today. Curated by Julija Palmeirao (better known in Lithuania as Julija Dailidėnaitė) and Christian Noorbergen, the show features works of the sixteen Lithuanian and French artists offer a fresh perspective on the union of the two cultures. The two curators belong to two different generations and they bring their different experiential backgrounds to discuss the importance of such bicultural initiatives.

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What is the importance of multi-cultural shows such as “Man and Fish”? Are these kinds of events still relevant to us? And who needs them most: artists or their audiences?

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Christian Noorbergen: Art draws on encounters and otherness. If art does not step out of its comfort zone (in this case it’s a country), it fails to realise itself fully and becomes a useless utopia. Stepping over your own boundaries is a way towards openness and the creative metamorphosis that we all seek for. I am delighted by such cultural exchanges. In 2018, Orsay Museum (Musee d’Orsay) in Paris hosted a show “Wild Souls: The Symbolist Art of the Baltic States” which marked the centenary of the independence of the Baltic States and presented the most exquisite pieces of art of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. And today we are delighted to be presenting this new show which, for French artists, has been both an adventure and a cultural revelation of sorts. There is nothing ordinary about this multifaceted show – it not only invigorates and enriches the viewer’s mind, but also shakes up the established creative patterns of the artists themselves. Multicultural openness and daring to take risks are vital to both artists and society. This enables a healthy dialogue and positive emulation. This should set an example for the entire humanity.

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Julija Palmeirao: I am deeply convinced that bicultural collaboration will remain just as popular in the future as it has been in the past. It is one of the best ways of discovering artists who can bring entirely different experiences and influences. To answer your question, I’d say that we are all winners here, both public and artists. The latter find group shows and international collaboration particularly stimulating. It is exciting for them to be seen in the places where they can measure their own work against a much wider context. Artistic development requires one to actively participate in and carefully observe the art processes that take place both inside and outside the borders of one’s own country. Artists need this kind of confrontation with both their colleagues and society as such because this is what brings the sense of meaning to their work.

Here we should also note that Lithuania has a large francophone community which is always excited about and hungry for French art and culture. And in France, likewise, we can now observe a heightened interest in the art from Baltic states. Therefore the need for cultural exchange is clearly evident, just as is the significance of group shows. Furthermore, in a single bicultural show we can capture a particularly dense panorama of the two countries.

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Let’s return to the show “Man and Fish”, which brought you too together for a common creative goal. The show features both painting and sculpture. What makes these art forms interesting today? What are the challenges contemporary painters and sculptors face today?

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Julija P.: Because I specialise primarily in painting, I can see that it is doing exceptionally well in the field of contemporary art. Painting is alive and well despite multiple attempts since the 1960s to ‘kill’ and ‘bury’ it. It is evident from the international tendencies of contemporary art. Globalisation takes its toll on all areas of art. Contemporary technologies and ubiquitous access to information online are forcing art to gradually lose its local specificity. Today, contemporary painting starts showing some common tendencies that are independent of the regions where the artists live and work. We start seeing many similarities between the dominant styles, experimental trends and topics. For instance, in the context of our show we can see that Lithuanian artists appear to be much less diverse in style compared to how it was, say, thirty years ago.

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Christian N.: While sculpture today cannot boast with the same popularity, it is, after all, the oldest form of human language. In a way, the exclusivity of this art form protects it from the hypes and vices of contemporaneity. Painters are much more sensitive to the zeitgeist and art history, and their work appeals mostly to the sensibilities of a contemporary viewer. Meanwhile the ideal of sculpture (here I don’t mean installation art or conceptual sculpture) is much more humanistic compared to painting. Paradoxically enough, painters are more abstract. The space they command is an entire cosmos, and painters are free to convey it on the two-dimensional space of their canvases. Thus this show manifests a rather peculiar union between the groundedness of sculpture and the uplifting effect of painting. Thanks to this union, we can cover the entire domain of human intelligence without having to stick to just one point of view. This is an excellent example of how the two artistic media can complement each other perfectly. This way we make the artworks produce a much more powerful effect, both conscious and unconscious one.

The challenge sculptors have to face is how to live in the world dominated by image. Meanwhile painters need to find ways to navigate the world oversaturated with the surface imagery.

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Christian, this is not the first time when you work with the collaborations between French and Lithuanian artists. How would you describe the situation in Lithuania compared to France?

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Christian N.: I honestly admire the utter authenticity of the Lithuanian artists, and at the same time marvel at their capacity to properlypresent themselves in the contemporary art processes without loosing their uniqueness. Speaking of France, I must admit, many of its artists are now overcome with the hyper-contemporary deficiencies and often commit the so-called artistic pseudo-crimes. The Lithuanian artists which I have met during the studio visits (and some of which I have already befriended) seem to be able to avoid these creative challenges and remain true to their own artistic style. There is something truly dignified about the maturity and audacity of these artists. And these are the traits I respect greatly.

The same extends to the audiences too. I can honestly say that Lithuanian audiences have the liveliness and passion about them that I adore and love so much. I sometimes miss that back in France, where the audiences can often be a little unsettled, particularly in Paris.

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Julija, this is not the first time you are collaborating with the French artists as well. What are your thoughts on the French art scene? Any impressions from the shows you were curating?

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Julija P.: Indeed, “Man and Fish” is not my first collaboration with the French artists. It all began when I got a chance to work with Galerie Nivet-Carzon in Paris. I collaborated in organising the Lithuanian-French group show “Ultra-Memory / Ultramemoire” (2011, Vilnius). I had a chance to take a closer look at the French painting and photography (along with the Lithuanian artists Akvilė Anglickaitė, Jolanta Kyzikaitė and Aistė Kirvelytė we had Michel Castaignet, Nataliya Lyakh and Joseph Choi). In “Man and Fish”, painting is still in the spotlight but here we also have my next favourite medium – sculpture (represented by the artists Thierry Dalat, David Daoud, Hélène Duclos, Manu Rich, Julien Allegre, Jean Pierre Ruel, Francisco Sepulveda, Rūta Jusionytė, Vilmantas Marcinkevičius, Vytenis Lingys, Adelė Liepa Kaunaitė, Audronė Petrašiūnaitė, Miglė Kosinskaitė, Indra Marcinkevičienė, Martynas Gaubas, and Algimantas Šlapikas).

My encounters with French artists have always been pleasantly surprising. They are full of sensuous and wild energy which also paradoxically creates the effect of inner peace. I am always excited to take part in these bicultural projects because I get a chance to immerse myself in research, acquaint myself closely with the works of each individual artist, and discover some more general cultural tendencies.

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Christian, you have a lot of experience working with the French artists. How did the relations between artists and curators changed since the early days of your career?

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Christian N.: I know from experience how much power the media have. The fate of an entire artistic career can depend on on the way information is presented. For example, the fame of the most influential French curators might unjustly overshadow the artists themselves. The relation between curators and artists used to be a bit more complicated. However, due to the current difficulties related to exhibiting their work in France (due to the high level of competition), the role of curators is becoming much more prominent, while their relation with artists is becoming more open and genuine. Eventually, the years of work lead to trust, collaborative spirit, and friendship. After all, we are all in the same boat, and the curator’s role is to row it. I actually consider myself a smuggler or a mediator, and am proud of it because the artists clearly deserve that.

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More about the exhibition.

Article in NEMUNAS.

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