The exhibition of icons „Window“ by Raimundas Navakauskas will be opened in the gallery on the 2nd floor of Klaipėda Culture Communication centre ( Bažnyčių st. 4, Klaipėda) on the 17th of December, Friday, 5pm.
Thirteen icons that were created by the artist Raimondas Navakauskas according to the strict iconographic canons will be represented in the sacral art exhibition dedicated for the major annual festivals.
Icon (in Greek εiκών – image) – a sacral painting that originated in Byzantine culture, depicting saints, scenes from their lives, or biblical or liturgical themes. It is typical for Eastern Christian churches, including Orthodox and Greek. An icon differs from other paintings which were painted following the Christian topic, as it follows an iconographic canon, marked by dogma, that has been handed down from one generation to the next. This canon protects the way icons are greated from possible errors and distortions.
Icons have been respected and recognised in both major Eastern and Western traditions since the beginning of Christianity. However, only the Orthodox Church has preserved the tradition of icon-crafting to the present day. The unique importance of icons for the faith has never been rejected by the Catholic Church but historical circumstances and the concept of liturgical art have meant that the iconographic tradition and its canons have been neglected for a long time in the West, following the split between Eastern and Western Christians. This is how the place of the icon was given over to secular art. The interest in icons was revived in the 20th century in the Catholic Church, following the reconciliation between Eastern and Western believers after the second meeting of Vatican.
„An icon is a representation of the Scriptures. That image becomes flesh if it is believed, if prayer permeates it as it slips into a view. The window to Heaven is an icon. But what if there are many of them? It is also already the house of God with a stained glass window of all the saints. Advent peace to those who look and pray…” – painter R. Navakauskas represents his exhibition „Window”.
When the artist was asked how the ideas for the paintings came up, he said: „I think it’s God’s work. I try not to do anything artificial, not to think anything through. <…> All my works are motivated by God, I don’t paint for money or fame. I try to show my attitude to life, my relationship with God, or with my close friend in my works. What is in my mind appears on the canvas too. I think that God is the main artist, and I am just a tool for God to use. Now it even seems that all the mistakes I had made in my life were useful for my present ministry.”
Raimondas Navakauskas (born 1961 in Naujoji Akmenė) graduated from the Telšiai Applied Arts Technical College and the Vilnius Academy of Arts. Since 1978 he has participated in exhibitions in Lithuania and abroad: in Denmark, France, Belgium, Germany, pleneries and art festivals in Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Denmark (1990). In 2001 he was the winner of the International exhibition „Verdenskunst” in Ar 2000 i Vejle Amt (Denmark) .
The exhibition will run until 6 January 2022.
The gallery is open on weekdays 9am-5pm. (lunch break 12 noon – 1 pm).
Photography and filming will take place during the event. Please note that participants may be seen in photographs and videos that will be published on social networks and media.
Visitors are requested to observe the security requirements due to quarantine restrictions.
