XX a. pradžios Lietuvos dailė: magistralės ir marginalijos klausimas
Lithuanian art of the early 20th century: the question of the mainstream and the margin

Summary/Abstract: In the second half of the 20th century, the majority of Lithuanian art scholars held a view that Lithuanian art constituted the main line along which the national art developed in the early 20th century, while the pieces of art produced in Lithuania by ethnic minorities were seen as marginal, inferior, and not so important. However the emergence of Lithuanian art was inspired by the national rebirth and occurred rather recently, after 1906. The art research of the current decade has shown that it was namely the artists of other nationalities - Poles, Jews, and Russians - who were most intensively engaged in the artistic life of Lithuania in the early 20th century: they were involved not solely in the creation of art, but also founded various artistic institutions, organised exhibitions and shaped the face of art during that period. Conclusion: art created in Vilnius in the early 20th century should be viewed as a combination of the creative work and activity of equivalent partners - Lithuanians, Poles, Jews and Russians - rather than as the mainstream of Lithuanian art bordered by the marginal art forms of ethnic minorities.

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