On Sunday evening, the windows of the former Kaunas Central Post Office building drew residents’ attention as they flashed orange. According to the National Institute of Architecture, which will be based in the building, the action during the strike was intended to express solidarity with Lithuania’s cultural community and to draw attention to the demands raised over the Ministry of Culture being handed over to “Nemuno aušra”.
On Sunday, the nationwide warning strike brought together not only cultural organisations in Kaunas city and district, but also cultural workers across Lithuania: national cultural and arts institutions, ethnic and amateur culture organisations, city theatres, museums, festivals, non-governmental arts organisations, creators’ associations, and trade unions.
According to the National Institute of Architecture, the traffic-light-like light installation in the central windows of the Kaunas Central Post Office building will remain in operation until work begins on Monday. The initiative was carried out in cooperation with the technical event services company Scenos Techninis Servisas, photographer Arvydas Čiukšys, and advertising producers Artreka.
“We express our support for Lithuania’s entire cultural community, united in an unprecedented movement. “We do not support the destruction brought about by today’s political manoeuvring. Culture is a prerequisite for a democratic, creative, and cohesive civic society. It should not be traded, divided, manipulated, or handed over to those for whom transparency, respect, professionalism, and competence are not characteristic,” says Kęstutis Kuizinas, Director of the National Institute of Architecture.
By Government resolution, in 2028 the former Kaunas Central Post Office building will become home to the National Institute of Architecture, a cultural centre dedicated to Lithuania’s architectural art and history, in early 2028. Restoration works are scheduled to begin here later this year.
