Photography Exhibition
Exhibition Opening: January 29, 2025, 5:00 PM
The exhibition will be opened by gallery director Vilma Jankienė.
During the opening, poets Vladas Braziūnas, Antanas A. Jonynas, Dainius Gintalas, Ričardas Šileika, and Alvydas Šlepikas will read texts about Užupis.
In this exhibition, poet and photographer Alis Balbierius presents photographs from his analog archive, capturing views of Užupis from 1994–2009.
Why Užupis?
According to the photographer, though he lived on the opposite side of Vilnius at the time, Užupis seemed like a myth created by his friends. His connection to Užupis came through the friendships and acquaintances he had with its artists and residents. These included his close friend, the late painter Zenonas Šteinys, who lived there; writers Jurgis Kunčinas and Antanas Ramonas (the latter buried in the old Bernardine Cemetery); the unforgettable charismatic “Duke of Užupis,” Vildaugas—Stasys Urniežis—and numerous other artists and locals. Encounters with these people at bohemian gatherings shaped Balbierius’ vision of Užupis as a place of freedom and myth, especially during the late Soviet era and the early years of Lithuanian independence.
Balbierius was captivated by Užupis’s secrets, its abandonment, ruins, expressive old architecture, and the Bernardine Cemetery. He was drawn to its visual allure, knowing even then that it would eventually vanish, be altered, or even destroyed. His aim was to document and preserve the memory of this place through photography.
As the artist states:
“In these images of Užupis from 1994–2009, one shouldn’t search for artistic endeavors—this is urban documentation where the inaccuracies of photography are filled with the subdued light of a bygone era. This light, I hope, gives these photographs vitality and distinctiveness, reviving memory.”
— Art Critic Agnė Taliūtė
