Lithuania’s three-month cultural season in France is set to close on Thursday with a concert and an imagination forum at the Palais de Tokyo museum of modern art in Paris.
Lithuania’s three-month cultural season in France is set to close on Thursday with a concert and an imagination forum at the Palais de Tokyo museum of modern art in Paris.
According to the Lithuanian Culture Institute, the season will end with a performance by drummer, composer and visual artist Vladimir Tarasov, and an international imagination forum titled “After the End”, curated by philosopher Kristupas Sabolius.
The forum will feature researchers from Ukraine, Brazil, France, Algeria, and other countries, along with Lithuanian historian Marija Drėmaitė and artist-curators Nomeda and Gediminas Urbonas.
The Season of Lithuania in France saw almost 300 performances by Lithuanian artists and creators, and involved over 500 authors, performers, and other cultural figures, along with over 130 bilateral partnerships. Events took place in more than 80 cities and towns across France.
Virginija Vitkienė, the commissioner of the season, noted that this was the first time independent Lithuania had presented its culture abroad on such a scale. It has proved to be a success, building new connections and strengthening existing ones among creators, she said.
According to Julia Rėklaitė, director of the Lithuanian Culture Institute, the season has expanded mutual understanding and generated discussions with French cultural professionals about Lithuania’s dynamic art scene, energy, and innovative ideas.
After the season, the National Museum of Lithuania will continue its cooperation with French art institutions. Vilnius’ MO Museum and the Pompidou Centre plan a joint exhibition in 2028, and next year, Lithuania will host an exhibition featuring works created through collaborations between the biennales of Kaunas, Lyon, and Chroniques.
Some Lithuanian works will remain on display in various French art institutions until early next year.
Lithuania’s cultural season in France was officially launched at the Pompidou Centre in Paris on September 13. It ran under the slogan Se voir en l'autre (The Other Same).
Online EditorThe National Folk Museum of Korea will open a special exhibition on Wednesday celebrating the Year of the Snake, one of the 12 Chinese zodiac animals. The exhibition “The Snake with a Thousand Faces,” running through March 3, will showcase some 60 items related to the animal from Africa to North America, exploring the conflicting human nature that views snakes as both scary and sacred, according to the state-run museum. “The Wise Snake” is one of the three zones set up, l
The National Folk Museum of Korea will open a special exhibition on Wednesday celebrating the Year of the Snake, one of the 12 Chinese zodiac animals.
The exhibition “The Snake with a Thousand Faces,” running through March 3, will showcase some 60 items related to the animal from Africa to North America, exploring the conflicting human nature that views snakes as both scary and sacred, according to the state-run museum.
“The Wise Snake” is one of the three zones set up, looking at objects like photos, stamps and crafts that depict the animal as imparting wisdom.
“The Frightening Snake” is the next section where historical evidence points to people avoiding the animal out of fear, with Koreans going as far as wearing “norigae” -- decorative pendants -- with a scent believed to keep the animal away.
The Buddhist painting “The Ten Kings Who Rule the Underworld” is a more powerful rendition of a world of suffering in which the snake carries out afterlife punishment at the king’s direction.
“The Sacred Snake” closes the show. A peach-shaped gourd dipper with a snake-engraved ring, symbolizing vitality and life, represents the sacred power of the snake to fend off “something bad and wicked,” according to the museum.
“Humans are afraid of snakes, yet see them as sacred too,” a museum official said. “The fact that the snake outgrows its skin and sheds it renders the animal capable of crossing over different worlds and bringing peace and prosperity to humans.”
Foreign objects are on display as well.
The “Aztec Calendar Stone” is a disk covered in intricate designs with carved symbols including the snake -- an animal thought to have powers over heaven and earth.
A Maha Kola mask from Sri Lanka is a ritual item used to purge bad spirits. Maha Kola is the boss of the 18 demons of illness represented in the Sanni Dance or “Devil Dance.”
A special lecture will take place Wednesday at the museum in Seoul to understand the artifacts and their historical perceptions.
Choi Si-young