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Cloth & Culture NOW
the artists - Severija Incirauskaite, Lithuania
At present, I am in the process of graduating
from a doctoral program at VDA [Lithuanian State Art Academy].
The title of my doctoral thesis is "The Relationship between Modernity and
Ethnic Traditions in Modern Lithuanian Textiles". So I have
already been exploring ethnic traditions and what influence they
have had on contemporary Lithuanian textile artists for two years.
This topic is interesting in terms of both the theoretical and
practical aspects, as I have been analyzing how various Lithuanian
textile artists interpret ethnographic topics and at the same time,
myself creating textiles pieces related to the topic.
Nowadays, ethnic culture and ethnic originality,
as with many other things that are in no way commercial, are
quite often developed into a consumable item. The market of global
production initiates the creation of "Lithuanity" which is often referred
to as "the image of Lithuania" – a face that should
be attractive both to foreign investors and the tourism industry.
In my works I pay a lot of attention to a phenomenon I call mass
commercialization – ethnic cultural elements re-made into
rather primitive and very easily understandable "products" that
I call "ethnic kitsch". However, to some extent, they
become like reference points in my own textile works. But my goal
is not "commercialization" as such, but a kind of interpretation
of the vulgarized ethnic forms and their re-transformation into
professional pieces of art using modern textile technologies and
individual artistic language.
Usually, when speaking about our ethnic culture, we notice and
try to highlight its specific characteristics and its authenticity
compared to other cultures. The universality and integrity of ethnic
culture is rarely analyzed, despite the fact that ethnologists
have noted on numerous occasions that the older the culture, the
more it contains elements in common with other old cultures. In
Stone Age territories we can find practically the same cultural
features. That is why I think ethnic culture is not only what marks
people out as different, but also forms the basis for communicating
with other cultures. There are many things that are common to ethnic
cultures and sometimes these things are obvious. Moreover, a lot
of textile techniques, considering their archaic origin, can become
references to ethnic themes as well as relationships to a universal
form of intercommunication.
The forms used to express ethnicity in
modern culture are also very often similar. In popular culture,
there are numerous "ethnicities" which
I call "ethnic kitsch", in any country. Within the context of the
increasing dominance of the post-modern thinking that rejects dualistic thinking,
it has become more and more popular to speak neither about cultural difference,
nor cultural insularity as one of the major ways of preserving ethnic uniqueness,
but about the universality of the cultural elements, their integrity and mobility.
As many modern thinkers say, it is one of the greatest paradoxes nowadays to
be global and local at the same time.
It is very difficult to say whether the
influence of other cultures is a positive or negative phenomenon.
I, at least personally, think that the creative essence of any
culture is its openness to various influences and impacts – insularity
cannot be related to the very origin of culture. That is why
I perceive the insularity in my own cultural medium as an unimaginable
phenomenon.
In the historical and cultural context, Lithuania has never been
a country that dictates fashion or sets trends. Moreover, influences
from neighbouring countries over the years (both Russian and Polish),
has left quite a visible impression on our national culture.
The historical development of textiles for me is mostly interesting
on the theoretical level, but I would also say that a certain understanding
about it is expressed in my work both directly, and from the sub-consciousness.
LITHUANIA
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