ČIURLIONIS AND
DESIGN II

M. K. Čiurlionis National Museum of Art, in order to encourage contemporary design and art creators to use Čiurlionis's inexhaustible creativity, applying his ideas in our everyday life, continues the series of mini-exhibitions "Čiurlionis and Design".

The authors of the project Jolanta Lunevičienė and designer Jolanta Talaikytė, professor at the Vilnius Academy of Arts, have come up with a series of luxurious scarves and men's accessories that involve the paintings of M. K. Čiurlionis as a unique accent to men's and women's clothing.

Why were scarves chosen? "For me, a scarf implies reminiscences of women in my family, full of warm memories, a diary of their thoughts, and a cosy adornment that inspires creativity. Scarves, as heirlooms, are passed down from generation to generation, inherited or donated," says J. Lunevičienė, the author of the project.

"Scarves created after Čiurlionis’ paintings are ahead of fashion, they are suitable for those who wish to create a distinctive style that would reflect a person's way of life and his worldview. If you love and know how to tie scarves, you will always be stylish, like famous film icons," – that’s the designer J. Talaikytė’s opinion.

The designers choose the works by M. K. Čiurlionis very carefully, looking forward to ensuring that the design does not alter the format of the work and that the colours are as close to the original as possible. J. Lunevičienė explains that she was creating the scarves with great respect for the artist, therefore she chose an exclusive family textile factory dating back as far as 1866. It is near the lake Como in Italy. The manufacturers are well aware of everything that is related to a work of art – colour, shade, luxury and quality. They create silk souvenirs for the Metropolitan, the British and other famous museums around the world. The local Como silk, widely known for its delicacy and softness, has been used for the reproductions of paintings by Čiurlionis.

By the way, Lithuania has a distant but obvious connection with the silk of this region. The idea of bringing silkworms to the area of the Como lake was conceived in the early 15th century by Ludovico Sforza, Duke of Milan, who was a relative of Queen Bona. From then on, the province was home to the silk industry, which is still thriving today.

These scarves are a unique gift that represents Lithuanian culture and make us proud by M. K. Čiurlionis creation. They carry the message of the artist and his work to the world.

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