Medūza
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Laura Marija Balčiūnaitė & Emilija Povilanskaitė
Pirmas Kontaktas
2024.04.12–05.11
“Medūza” is pleased to present the exhibition First Contact by the artistic duo Emilija Povilanskaitė and Laura Marija Balčiūnaitė.
What does contact look like between beings that thrive in different and mutually inaccessible environments? Such encounters may reveal something about one another, yet at the same time can irreversibly transform them. A first contact can be both decisive and final. It is a risky state of uncertainty, in which everything that has been is instantly reconsidered, and the terms of (co)existence from this moment on are negotiated.
The concept for this exhibition emerged as the artists reflected on the place of nature in the imagery of contemporary techno-utopias. The cyborg-like aspirations of Silicon Valley transhumanism and dreams of brain–machine interfaces aim to transform humans and re-center them within a domesticated technological (neo)nature. In this techno-dream, the direct, bodily relationship of humans with the wild—where traces of magical thinking, grounded not only in exploitation but also in kinship, can still be found—is marginalized and devalued.
In creating the installation, the artists drew inspiration from the research of Marija Gimbutienė and Leo Lionni, who described and imagined extinct cultures and life forms. In their work, the artists found a shared desire to develop a broader understanding of knowledge that encompasses more than just instrumental, rational thinking, and to articulate often-forgotten mental landscapes that extend beyond the limits of human imagination. The exhibition thus explores contact with alternative or no-longer-existent beings, attempting to understand them through portals, scent, memories, and stories. A portal is an energetically charged liminal space, existing within our mental and psychogeographic maps.
Laura Marija Balčiūnaitė’s artistic practice stems from her experience as a flâneuse: a wanderer observing life and society. Laura works with the human body, exploring aspects from the cosmic and erotic to the natural and self-loving. Through her drawings, psychogeographic maps, and sound performances, she investigates sensory energy, desire, and the need for tenderness, as well as magic that transcends the human body and emotions. Her creative sphere connects concepts of health practices, sound, drawing and movement, design and myth, and the aesthetics of tactility from feminist and queer theoretical perspectives.
Emilija Povilanskaitė speculatively examines the complex relationship between humans and contemporary technologies through her films and installations. In both her cinematic works and installations—where media often include high-voltage electricity and scent—she questions dominant scientific methodologies and the realities they establish, creating speculative narratives that offer alternative visions.
Laura Marija Balčiūnaitė & Emilija Povilanskaitė
Pirmas Kontaktas
2024.04.12–05.11
Text in English
“Medūza” is pleased to present the exhibition First Contact by the artistic duo Emilija Povilanskaitė and Laura Marija Balčiūnaitė.
What does contact look like between beings that thrive in different and mutually inaccessible environments? Such encounters may reveal something about one another, yet at the same time can irreversibly transform them. A first contact can be both decisive and final. It is a risky state of uncertainty, in which everything that has been is instantly reconsidered, and the terms of (co)existence from this moment on are negotiated.
The concept for this exhibition emerged as the artists reflected on the place of nature in the imagery of contemporary techno-utopias. The cyborg-like aspirations of Silicon Valley transhumanism and dreams of brain–machine interfaces aim to transform humans and re-center them within a domesticated technological (neo)nature. In this techno-dream, the direct, bodily relationship of humans with the wild—where traces of magical thinking, grounded not only in exploitation but also in kinship, can still be found—is marginalized and devalued.
In creating the installation, the artists drew inspiration from the research of Marija Gimbutienė and Leo Lionni, who described and imagined extinct cultures and life forms. In their work, the artists found a shared desire to develop a broader understanding of knowledge that encompasses more than just instrumental, rational thinking, and to articulate often-forgotten mental landscapes that extend beyond the limits of human imagination. The exhibition thus explores contact with alternative or no-longer-existent beings, attempting to understand them through portals, scent, memories, and stories. A portal is an energetically charged liminal space, existing within our mental and psychogeographic maps.
Laura Marija Balčiūnaitė’s artistic practice stems from her experience as a flâneuse: a wanderer observing life and society. Laura works with the human body, exploring aspects from the cosmic and erotic to the natural and self-loving. Through her drawings, psychogeographic maps, and sound performances, she investigates sensory energy, desire, and the need for tenderness, as well as magic that transcends the human body and emotions. Her creative sphere connects concepts of health practices, sound, drawing and movement, design and myth, and the aesthetics of tactility from feminist and queer theoretical perspectives.
Emilija Povilanskaitė speculatively examines the complex relationship between humans and contemporary technologies through her films and installations. In both her cinematic works and installations—where media often include high-voltage electricity and scent—she questions dominant scientific methodologies and the realities they establish, creating speculative narratives that offer alternative visions.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to sincerely thank Alina Balčiūnienė, Justa Bø, Algirdas Jakus, Gintarė Jonaitė (Tellus Studio), Elena Laurinavičiūtė, Aleksandra Minenko (metalworks), and Ugnė Vyliaudaitė, who contributed to the realization of this exhibition through their work and support.Exhibition design by Vytautas Volbekas
PR by Deimantė Bulbenkaitė
Photographs by Laurynas Skeisgiela
The exhibition First Contact at the art space “Medūza” will be on view until May 11. It is part of the Lithuanian Artists’ Association’s Strategic Program for Art Creators, funded by the Lithuanian Council for Culture.
First Contact will be open from April 12, 2024, to May 11, 2024. The exhibition is supported by the Lithuanian Council for Culture.
Tekstas lietuvių kalba
Kaip atrodo kontaktas tarp skirtingų ir nesusisiekiančiose terpėse tarpstančių būtybių? Tokie kontaktai gali joms šį tą apie kits kitą atskleisti, tačiau sykiu gali ir negrįžtamai jas pakeisti. Pirmas kontaktas, gali būti ir lemtingas, ir paskutinis. Tai rizikinga neapibrėžtumo būsena, kurioje akimirksniu persvarstoma kuo būta iki šiol bei deramasi dėl (iš)gyvenimo nuo šiol.
Šios parodos idėja užsimezgė menininkėms mąstant apie gamtos vietą šiandienos techno-utopijų vaizdinijojoje. Silicio slėnio transhumanizmo kiborgiškos aspiracijos bei svajos apie smegenų-mašinų sąsajas siekia žmogų transformuoti ir naujai įcentruoti prijaukintoje technologinėje (neo)gamtoje. Šiame techno-sapne yra išstumiamas ir nuvertinamas betarpiškas žmogaus kūno santykis su laukinija, kuriame vis dar galima rasti maginio mąstymo, grįsto ne tik išnaudojimu, bet giminyste, pėdsaką.
Kurdamos instaliaciją, menininkės įkvėpimo sėmėsi iš Marijos Gimbutienės ir Leo Lionni mokslinių tyrimų, aprašančių bei įsivaizduojančių išnykusias kultūras ir gyvybės formas. Jų darbuose jos rado sau artimą siekį suformuoti platesnę, daugiau nei tik instrumentišką racionalų mąstymą apimančią žinių sampratą ir išartikuliuoti neretai pamirštamus mentalinius kraštovaizdžius, kurie peržengtų vien tik žmogiškos vaizduotės ribas. Tokiu būdu parodoje kalbama apie kontaktą su alternatyviomis ar nebeegzistuojančiomis būtybėmis ir mėginama jas pažinti komunikuojant per portalus, kvapą, atsiminimus ir istorijas. Portalas – tai energetiškai įkrauta liminali erdvė, egzistuojanti mūsų mentaliniuose ir psichogeografiniuose žemėlapiuose.
Lauros Marijos Balčiūnaitės meninė praktika gimė iš buvimo flâneuse: klajotoja, stebinčia gyvenimą̨ ir visuomenę. Laura dirba su žmogaus kūnu, nuo kosminio ir erotinio iki natūralaus ir save mylinčio. Savo piešiniais, psichogeografiniais žemėlapiais, garso performansais ji tyrinėja juslinę energiją, aistrą ir švelnumo poreikį, magiją, peržengiančią žmogaus kūną̨ ir jausmus. Lauros kūrybinę terpę sieja sveikatos praktikos sąmpratos, garso, piešinių ir judesio ir santykis, dizainas ir mitas, bei takumo estetika iš feminizmo ir queer teorijos perspektyvų.
Emilija Povilanskaitė savo filmais ir instaliacijomis spekuliatyviai tyrinėja sudėtingą žmogaus santykį su šiuolaikinėmis technologijomis. Tiek kino darbuose, tiek ir instaliacijose, kurių medija neretai tampa aukštos įtampos elektra ir kvapas, menininkė kvestionuoja įsigalėjusią mokslinę metodiką ir jos steigiamą tikrovę bei kuria jos alternatyvas siūlančius spekuliatyvius pasakojimus.
PADĖKOS ŽODŽIAI
Parodos dizainas Vytautas Volbekas
Sklaida Deimantė Bulbenkaitė
Nuotraukos Laurynas Skeisgiela
Paroda „Pirmas kontaktas“ meno erdvėje „Medūza“ rodoma iki gegužės 11 d. Ji yra Lietuvos dailininkų sąjungos Strateginės meno kūrėjų organizacijos programos dalis. Programą finansuoja Lietuvos kultūros taryba."
Paroda „Pirmas kontaktas“ meno erdvėje „Medūza“ veiks nuo 2024 m. balandžio 12 d. iki gegužės 11 d. imtinai. Parodą remia Lietuvos Kultūros taryba.
