 |
Vytautas KairiikstisLithuanian painter and art historian.
Date of Birth: 14.11.1890
Country:  Lithuania |
Content:
- Vytautas Kairiūkštis: Lithuanian Painter and Art Historian
- Military Service and Art Education
- Artistic Career
- Teaching and Research
- Later Career and Legacy
- Writings and Exhibitions
Vytautas Kairiūkštis: Lithuanian Painter and Art Historian
Early Life and EducationVytautas Kairiūkštis was born to a teacher, Juozas Kairiūkštis, in Lithuania. His brother, Stasys Kairiūkštis, also became a teacher. From 1910 to 1912, Kairiūkštis studied at Ivan Trutnev's Drawing School in Vilnius. He then pursued studies at Konstantin Yuon's studio in Moscow (1912-1913) and the Faculty of Law at Moscow University (1913-1916).
Military Service and Art Education
In 1917-1918, Kairiūkštis studied painting under Nikolai Kasatkin at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture, and Architecture. During World War I, he served in the Red Army's cultural department. Following the war, he returned to Moscow and attended the Higher Artistic and Technical Workshops (VKhUTEMAS) under Pavel Kuznetsov (1920-1921).
Artistic Career
In 1921, Kairiūkštis settled in Vilnius, where he taught art at secondary schools. He actively promoted avant-garde art by organizing exhibitions and participating in Polish avant-garde groups. From 1923 to 1930, he traveled widely in Europe, studying contemporary art movements.
Teaching and Research
Kairiūkštis established a painting studio in Vilnius in 1923, where notable artists like Vladas Drėma studied under him. He also completed his studies at Stefan Batory University in 1931. From 1937, he taught in Kaunas, and from 1940 to 1944, he worked at the M. K. Čiurlionis Museum in the same city.
Later Career and Legacy
Kairiūkštis became a professor at the Kaunas Institute of Decorative and Applied Arts after the war. He retired in 1952 and moved to Vilnius, where he resided until his death. He was buried at the Bernardine Cemetery in Vilnius.
Kairiūkštis' oeuvre includes figurative compositions, portraits, landscapes, and still lifes, primarily executed in oil and pastel. Early in his career, he was influenced by Cubism and Constructivism, while later landscapes showed the impact of Impressionism. He also experimented with Suprematism and Abstractionism.
Writings and Exhibitions
Kairiūkštis published a monograph on Lithuanian watercolorist Kaetonas Sklėrius (1938) and several works on Čiurlionis. He also wrote extensively on art theory. His exhibitions were held in Vilnius (1931, 1944, 1945), Kaunas (1932, 1935, 1936, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1944, 1945), Riga, and Tallinn (1937). A major retrospective was organized in Vilnius in 1970.
