Brief Glimpses of Beauty. Thinking about the History of Lithuanian Photography

The article proposes a critical rethinking of the multi-layered phenomenon of Lithuanian photography. From the beginning, in the 19th  century Lithuanian photography cherished an exceptional status within a cultural landscape, being considered a vehicle of lofty, patriotic emotions. The artic...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Adam Mazur
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Vilnius Academy of Arts Press 2021-07-01
Series:Acta Academiae Artium Vilnensis
Subjects:
Online Access:https://aaav.vda.lt/journal/article/view/21
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850048548067868672
author Adam Mazur
author_facet Adam Mazur
author_sort Adam Mazur
collection DOAJ
description The article proposes a critical rethinking of the multi-layered phenomenon of Lithuanian photography. From the beginning, in the 19th  century Lithuanian photography cherished an exceptional status within a cultural landscape, being considered a vehicle of lofty, patriotic emotions. The article is reassessing the social and cultural role of Lithuanian photo- graphers and is looking into a symptomatic lack of synchronicity with the medium’s grand narratives. The Lithuanian history of photography seems to be a consistent and exceptional narrative developed within a relative- ly small milieu of artists based in their homeland as well as Lithuanian émigrés. According to the author, indexical and documentary qualities of photography constitute the core of the phenomenon. The text is advocating inclusivity for non-Lithuanian authors, be it Polish Lithuanians, Russians, Jews, Germans, or Lithuanian Americans. Looking at photographs from the perspectives of literature (quoting Marcelijus Martinaitis and Tomas Venclova) and contemporary art (Jonas Mekas and Fluxus) may be also useful in reshaping and opening up the discourse of the discipline.
format Article
id doaj-art-dd9e519f46894a40a0848bbdeb4c33b4
institution DOAJ
issn 1392-0316
2783-6843
language English
publishDate 2021-07-01
publisher Vilnius Academy of Arts Press
record_format Article
series Acta Academiae Artium Vilnensis
spelling doaj-art-dd9e519f46894a40a0848bbdeb4c33b42025-08-20T02:53:55ZengVilnius Academy of Arts PressActa Academiae Artium Vilnensis1392-03162783-68432021-07-019910.37522/aaav.99.2020.21Brief Glimpses of Beauty. Thinking about the History of Lithuanian PhotographyAdam Mazur0University of Arts in Poznań, Poznań, Poland The article proposes a critical rethinking of the multi-layered phenomenon of Lithuanian photography. From the beginning, in the 19th  century Lithuanian photography cherished an exceptional status within a cultural landscape, being considered a vehicle of lofty, patriotic emotions. The article is reassessing the social and cultural role of Lithuanian photo- graphers and is looking into a symptomatic lack of synchronicity with the medium’s grand narratives. The Lithuanian history of photography seems to be a consistent and exceptional narrative developed within a relative- ly small milieu of artists based in their homeland as well as Lithuanian émigrés. According to the author, indexical and documentary qualities of photography constitute the core of the phenomenon. The text is advocating inclusivity for non-Lithuanian authors, be it Polish Lithuanians, Russians, Jews, Germans, or Lithuanian Americans. Looking at photographs from the perspectives of literature (quoting Marcelijus Martinaitis and Tomas Venclova) and contemporary art (Jonas Mekas and Fluxus) may be also useful in reshaping and opening up the discourse of the discipline. https://aaav.vda.lt/journal/article/view/21Lithuanian PhotographyLithuanian ArtLithuanian Historydocumentary photographyart photographyBalys Buračas
spellingShingle Adam Mazur
Brief Glimpses of Beauty. Thinking about the History of Lithuanian Photography
Acta Academiae Artium Vilnensis
Lithuanian Photography
Lithuanian Art
Lithuanian History
documentary photography
art photography
Balys Buračas
title Brief Glimpses of Beauty. Thinking about the History of Lithuanian Photography
title_full Brief Glimpses of Beauty. Thinking about the History of Lithuanian Photography
title_fullStr Brief Glimpses of Beauty. Thinking about the History of Lithuanian Photography
title_full_unstemmed Brief Glimpses of Beauty. Thinking about the History of Lithuanian Photography
title_short Brief Glimpses of Beauty. Thinking about the History of Lithuanian Photography
title_sort brief glimpses of beauty thinking about the history of lithuanian photography
topic Lithuanian Photography
Lithuanian Art
Lithuanian History
documentary photography
art photography
Balys Buračas
url https://aaav.vda.lt/journal/article/view/21
work_keys_str_mv AT adammazur briefglimpsesofbeautythinkingaboutthehistoryoflithuanianphotography