“For the 20th spring in a row, the lovely gallery has invited me to put on an exhibition, and I am grateful. I was thinking of doing 20 paintings… It turned out to be more because more dreams were lined up, demanding to be materialized,” – said artist Marius Jonutis about his anniversary solo exhibition Dreams. The opening of the exhibition will take place at Vilnius gallery Meno niša on April 13 at 6 pm.
Photos – courtesy of Marius Jonutis ©
Marius Jonutis has been collaborating with Meno niša since the gallery’s inception. Symbolically, last year the gallery celebrated its 20th anniversary, and this year, this honourable number of 20 has also appeared in the work of Marius Jonutis.
According to Diana Stomienė, director of the Vilnius gallery Meno niša, this annual exhibition of M. Jonutis speaks of the artist’s productivity, but also his creativity, creative energy, and consistency. “The artist’s spring exhibitions have become a long-standing tradition of the gallery, and his colourful works have become a herald of summer. For twenty years, Marius’ exhibitions have been a celebration for both the audience and the gallery. Looking at his works, you can read the story year after year, the common human and topical themes create the story of Marius’ work, regardless of the material or technique,” said D. Stomienė, director of the gallery, about the long-standing cooperation with M. Jonutis.
According to Jonutis, there is no single unifying theme in the exhibition Dreams, no series or comic, just all kinds of dreams, images, and stories. “In a dream, as in life, everything is real, but not quite – something goes out of bounds, stays nearby, in a different way. In paintings it’s the same, they are not a picture of the world or life, but something close by, not the way it was, but the way it could be. They pop into my mind unintentionally and unexpectedly, both day and night, at the desk and in the car on the way to get potatoes in Alytus market. About home, about summer, Ukrainian, Kartvelian, about love and friends,” said M. Jonutis.
“I’m doing the work, solving problems – of composition, construction, of colour. How to make it the way I’ve thought of, from what I have, what I know, what I’ve tried, or what I come up with. Sometimes the work has its own path, and sometimes I end up somewhere I didn’t plan, but that’s the way it had to be, apparently. This game is fun for me, it’s what makes me get up every morning, like a gambler who can’t wait to get to the casino,” added M. Jonutis.
Jonutis graduated from the Vilnius Academy of Arts, majoring in graphic arts, and has held more than 50 group exhibitions and more than 60 solo exhibitions in Lithuania and abroad. The artist mainly creates sculptures, painted wood reliefs, paintings, graphic works, and illustrates books. During his 30-year career, M. Jonutis has created over 1 000 works of art, most of which have found their audience and new homes.
Photo – courtesy of Mika Savičiūtė © Marius Jonutis
Jonutis is also a modern storyteller in images, with a unique sense of a folk tale. By visualizing the plot in his own creative manner, he subtly brings archaic fairy tale symbols to the surface, recreates them, and builds a fantasy world out of them. In his work, people, mythical fairy tale characters, and magical objects are transformed from textual characters into multidimensional figures embodying common human values.
The exhibition Dreams by M. Jonutis will be open at Vilnius city gallery Meno niša until May 13. The gallery is sponsored by Vilnius City Municipality.
