dreams come true, just don’t have to give up on them

– You live in Vilnius, work in a Nemenčinė independent living home. You are a leisure specialist. I guess you are doing art therapy – do you teach grandparents to draw?

– Not just drawing. My colleagues and I try to diversify our grandparents’ leisure time as much as possible. Art is just one way. We bake the cakes with them, organize outings, attend exhibitions, read books, and make film screenings. My job is to be with those people and motivate them, to encourage them to do something so that they do not fit into depression, sadness, so that they do not feel lonely. Therefore, I try to brighten my grandparents’ everyday life in a variety of ways.

Before that, for a long time I worked for an insurance company, the Claims Department, but after the coronavirus pandemic, when the work became remote, without people – only documents and papers, I felt that there was no satisfaction, love for him. I started looking for where elsewhere to realize myself.

– Was drawing from childhood on your hobby list?

– In fact, I really enjoyed drawing from childhood. I grew up in Varėna district, in the village of Ūta, among the forests. I was a third child in the family – a punch. There were no peers around – maybe just one girl, and that far from us, a pencil and a piece of paper became my best friends. While my sister and brother were at school, and my parents were busy with work and household, I made the most interesting stories similar to comics about a girl who had her own life. Now I realize that this girl was probably I myself and, in depicting her, reflected her thoughts and experiences. I even talked to her, and she told me.

I remember, at the same time, I was overwhelmed with my legs – the biggest blisters on the knees, not healing for a long time. I also colored two balls in the places where my wounds were on my feet, on my feet. As if I was moving my pain to her and no longer hurt. Drawing helped me then.

Although I was often alone, I never felt lonely because I could create my own world while drawing and those drawings were living with me. It is a pity that I didn’t save anyone.

Fans: The biggest supporters of all Chamomile challenges are daughter Liepa, grandchildren Austen and Augustus. / Photo by R. Vaitkevičienė’s personal archive

– Really sorry…

– However, one thing with my arts remained (laughs). Our house in the village was once wooden and later bricked with white bricks. This is what I, maybe six, found a brown pebble and painted on them. I remember, even my ten -year -old sister, then I was angry that I was spoiling the house, I was doing all kinds of nonsense.

My brother lives in that house today. We and my sister often come there. Once upon a time, I showed the bricks I described to the granddaughter to know what kind of grandmother the artist was (laughs).

I never felt alone because I could create my own world while drawing and those drawings lived with my lives with me.

– Why didn’t you attend art classes if you like to draw so?

– I graduated from Rudniai eight years of school and there was no art circle there. I started attending ninth grade in Varėna, the most close to my sister, because it was uncomfortable to return to the village and my sister already had a family and apartment. Then I lived in a school dormitory for two years.

Art School in Varėna? It was probably, but I didn’t find it myself, and no one else was inserted. I used to draw a lot on my own, decorated the school stands, but I was still hesitant to paint – I didn’t know where to start. It seemed like this needed special knowledge I didn’t have. However, at the end of the middle, I thought that my future had to associate with the arts. I tried to get to the Telšiai Applied Art Technical School, unfortunately I did not overcome the competition.

Then the girlfriend persuaded her to join her medical school in Kaunas. I joined. Everything may have been good there, but when the practice began – to cut something, to do something somewhere, brrr… – This is what I said, I really can’t. I escaped. I came home and got a job at the then Rudni Help School for a fifth teacher. Here again, I had to touch a drawing, painting. As I understood it myself, I taught my fifth graders to draw and paint. At that time, neither computer nor Jutub had – I did everything out of feeling.

Choice: « If there is no human work in my work, it seems that something is still left unlucky, » says R. Vaitkevičienė, who loves the most people. / Photo by R. Vaitkevičienė’s personal archive

– Did you discover yourself in pedagogy?

– At first I thought so, but I didn’t become an art educator. I graduated from librarianship, hardly worked in specialty. I married, I wanted to raise children, and they were in no hurry to…

He went to 1991-1992, which had just been restored to Lithuania’s independence, a difficult time for the country’s economy and medicine. Wearing the first girl at the 33rd week of pregnancy, I felt that movements were gone. I gave birth to a dead daughter, whose umbilical cord was turned – suffocated while still in my womb.

A year later, I started to wait for my son. Also, during the 33rd week of pregnancy, premature birth began, during which my nephew turned the umbilical cord. He also suffocated.

I dipped in black mourning. I thought I was cursed. I sat on a lit candle in my room and didn’t go anywhere. I dipped into complete apathy until my mother pulled me out of it. I was strictly shining to end my self -regret that I was still young (when I was born my first daughter, I was 21) that I was still in front of my eyes, so that I was going crazy to see me. Worked.

– You are a happy mom today. As you dreamed, you have a daughter and a son – Liepa and Simon. In addition, the daughter gave you two grandchildren. You are the grandmother of Augustus Augusta, a four -year -old Austrian and almost an anniversary. Are you happy?

– Oh, yes! It turns out that Mom was right: all dreams come true, you just don’t have to give up them.

– You didn’t give up some dreams, and when did you come back to the other – when did you decide to learn how to paint?

– I always dreamed about it, just somehow paused myself – maybe the incentive was lacking from the country. Suddenly, friends who offered to join Vilnius J. Vienožinskis Art School and Adult Division were a good idea. Then I was 50 years old.

– For many women, that halfway is a great time to start something new…

– That happened to me as well. However, when I got it, it’s all the ammunition to prevent too little appearance (laughs). I entered J. Vienožinskis Art School, and in parallel I started attending Raimundas Savickas Art Studio, where I continued to improve my paintings. I added the secrets of painting portraiting. Literally, in those five years, I moved a lot a lot in painting.

It’s not easy: painting for long hours outside, sometimes biting for a frostbite, was not easy, but very interesting. / Photo by R. Vaitkevičienė’s personal archive

– Has your dream of a similar project called « The Great Art Challenge » was your dream? Do you like challenges in life at all?

– I like the challenges. Once I even filmed on the mass scene of the movie. I saw an announcement of the art challenge on social networks. I realized it could be very interesting. Just communicate with artists who have come from all over Lithuania what it means! Although there were quite a few distrust, I had courage at the same time. It was magical to try, find themselves in a very uncomfortable situation, and see how to get out of it.

In fact, I had much hope to get among the participants. I thought maybe too old, maybe there would be younger, more gifted … A few hundred participated and ten were involved. Interestingly, all drawing techniques, stylistics were different, different people, personalities.

– A month has passed since the end of the project. Do you communicate with them? You write through the facebook?

– Yes, we have our own group. We share ideas and even plan to organize a common painting plein air in the summer. All my new friends are extremely cute and friendly.

– I watched your journey in the project closely. I was really surprised when you freed some of your inner demons on the last show, having got a free theme. Explain what was it?

– I was very surprised by myself because I initially thought I was drawing a shag – a dish of eggs that I had successfully painted for my girlfriends several times. But as soon as I started to make a dark background, my hand was painting myself, no longer listening to me. For a moment, I even wanted to ask the show producer to ask for a new canvas. The terrible work went out … For all participants of the project, free creation has somehow appeared the coolest nut. It was much easier and I was able to paint a portrait of a person, make stained glass sketches, and other tasks.

I also have another version of this work. As soon as the project began, there was a disaster in our family. We raised two chihuahua dogs. I went with them for a walk. Suddenly a wolf dog jumped out of the bushes, grabbed one of them and advised that the poor man had a pelvic bone. It was operated on, but the complications soon began. I nursed it throughout the project, but I finally decided to sleep – I could no longer look at her silent suffering.

– What did you think helped win?

– The filming was really difficult: after 10-12 hours. I remember the first one so far: 9:30 p.m. We all met at 9:30 p.m. We split up. We were physically tired and psychologically. After all, we were painting from morning to evening, and we gave an interview between the tasks.

The strength of mine? Listening to the topic. Understanding what a professional commission wants. Of course, peace. Attitude. I was so waiting for every filming, going as a celebration. I enjoyed every moment. Although I did not avoid criticism, I made good practices from it. I think professional criticism is very useful.

I didn’t feel any competition, so when I won in the very first show, I was a little uncomfortable. Instead, when the other participant won, I felt much happier (smiles).

Mission: « If you want to be happy, give happiness to others, » says Ramune, who is trying to brighten the grandparents’ everyday life with his colleagues. / Photo by R. Vaitkevičienė’s personal archive

– You received a great award – an exclusive opportunity to organize an exhibition of your work in the largest living painting gallery in Lithuania – AP Gallery. Can we still see your work in it?

– It’s a pity, but no longer. The works were exhibited there for five days. Not everyone was able to see, so I’m looking for other places where they could extend their trip. In early June, if nothing changes, I will organize an exhibition at R. Savickas Gallery.

I am glad that my colleagues from A. Vienožinskis School visited me at the AP gallery. We have created an Eight +1 circle. We choose to paint one of our colleagues twice a week (she has an art studio), inviting professionals to consult us, and pose for pose. It is a pity that they are not always able to escape them: it is not on the way to work, the grandchildren come to the grandmother to come, but whenever I can always join.

I have a beautiful family and a dream – painting, developing, organizing exhibitions. After such a fun and successful start, I certainly do not promise to stop.

– Do you have your favorite painting theme?

– I like to paint a person. His emotions, character. It seems that if there is no man in my work, something is still not said. I love them very much. Maybe that’s why it’s good for me to work in a grandparent’s house – I see meaning.

In the past, you used to come to work with a smile and you get tired. Now I come and go out with a smile. Because I leave them knowing that I did something good.

– Why did you choose old age instead of childhood: after all, childish energy is completely different?

– The old man seemed more interesting to me. And very nice, looking at the painter’s point. I have painted many residents of these houses. But when I used to show a painted portrait to some grandfather, he is not happy, says, ugly, old. I know that he wants to see himself younger, and for me, those faces with wrinkles are very interesting with life experiences. Sometimes I catch myself watching them – how they sleep outside before the sunset. I try to imagine what those people were young, what they were doing, what they lived. I like that they feel loved and safe next to me.

– Are you not afraid of old age when looking at them?

– I was scared to get old, but I don’t think about old age while working here.

– Is it old age – no bigger challenge than the « great art challenge » you have just experienced?

– Definitely not. Old age is a natural process of life. Plus, it comes very slowly … The biggest challenge in my life was for me to have children, not to give up, not to fall into depression after unsuccessful attempts. It really took a lot of courage to go through that whole black stage, but eventually everything went out for a better family – I have a beautiful family and a dream – painting, developing, organizing exhibitions. After such a fun and successful start, I certainly do not promise to stop.