Lithuania / Litouwen

1. Cultural policy

Cultural policy profile

Cultural policy profile of Lithuania in 7 thematic chapters, including additional information and resources:

Government

Ministry of Culture

2. Official representations

Representation of Lithuania in Belgium

• Embassy of Lithuania in Belgium

• Permanent representation of Lithuania to the European Union

Vida GRAŽIENĖ, Culture, Audiovisual and Copyright Attaché
Rue Belliard 41-43, Brussels
B-1040, Belgium
+32 2 401 9835
+32 473 85 43 55
vida.graziene@eu.mfa.lt

Representation of Flanders in Lithuania

• Representation of Flanders in Lithuania

Diplomatic Representation of the Government of Flanders in Latvia
Diplomatic Representation of the Government of Flanders in Poland and in the Baltic States
Dhr. Thomas Castrel
fdfa.eu/en/lithuania

3. About funding, cooperation and information centers

– Funding and cooperation

• Lithuanian Council for Culture: provides funding for culture and arts projects, awards grants for culture and arts creators and provides consultations for operators of culture and arts projects. Programs are open for architecture, design, visual art, photography, interdisciplinary art, theatre, dance, circus, literature, music, ethnic culture, inter-domain projects. Funding programs are related to culture of communities, dissemination of culture and arts in Lithuania and presentation of Lithuanian culture in foreign countries, promotion of international cooperation, giving meaning to historical and cultural memory. The Council is an IFACCA National Member.

– Information

• EUNIC member: Lithuanian Culture Institute: established by the Ministry of Culture to strengthen the role of Lithuanian culture in the world. The Institute purposefully presents Lithuanian culture and professional art abroad and enhances the opportunities on the international scene for cultural professionals and artists, as well as for specialists and organisations working in these fields. The institute runs the Visits’ Programme, runs the Translation Grant Programme, cooperates with the Cultural Attachés in foreign countries in the preparation of their activities, compiles and disseminates information about Lithuanian culture and professional art.

• Creative Europe desk
  • Website of the Lithuanian Creative Europe desk
  • ec.europa.eu/culture/resources/creative-europe-desks

• Information overview on the OTM country page: On the Move is the cultural mobility information network, providing information and knowledge for artists and cultural professionals active across borders. On this page, you can find all current calls related to the country as well as the latest version of the Cultural Mobility Funding Guide – and more.

• Ars Baltica: Focused on cultural cooperation around the Baltic Sea, Ars Baltica provides country profiles for all 11 countries. Find your way to further information about film, literature, music, visual arts and performing arts in Lithuania!. “Cross-sectional” contains general information about projects, programmes and institutions that are dedicated to different fields of arts and culture.

4. Other information portals and platforms

– All disciplines

• The Association of Lithuanian Culture Centres (ALCC): unites 96% of all Lithuanian culture centres. For 14 years this organisation has been carrying out its purpose to unite culture centres, to represent their needs and to ensure that their activities are accessible in Lithuania and abroad.

• Residencies: overview of residencies in Lithuania on TransArtists

– Visual arts

• The Lithuanian Culture Institute: provides an overview of all key visual arts organisations. Check also the tab “events” for more information.

• Lithuanian Artists’ Association – Lietuvos Dailininkų Sąjunga LAA: founded in 1935 and unites today 1453 members. It encourages and popularizes their creative production. The association undertakes copyright protection, and supports legal, social and moral interests of its members. LAA initiates various artistic projects independently, as well as in cooperation with other artistic organizations and public institutions. It is a member of IAA / AIAP.

• Lithuanian Interdisciplinary Artists’ Association: Lietuvos tarpdisciplininio meno kūrėjų sąjunga Lietuvos (LeTMeKoo, LIAA): established as an association in 1997, is an artist-run organisation that has more than 120 members and belongs to the Lithuanian Art Creators’ Association. It organises and produces exhibitions, events, and residencies, publishes various publications and represents artists in various socio-political situations. Although the association’s name in Lithuanian resembles those of the creative unions established in the Soviet era, it has no inherited bureaucratic structure, and is thus able to flexibly respond to today’s situation of the Lithuanian art scene and flirt with it.

• The Union of Lithuanian Art Photographers: Pradžia – Lietuvos fotomenininkų sąjunga: represents its sector and provides relevant news and overview of specialised galleries.

• Nida Art Colony: a resourceful platform that runs a Residency Programme, Nida Doctoral School, and initiates art, education and research projects. It is a subdivision of the Vilnius Academy of the Arts.

• Kaunas Biennale: the largest, longest lasting, most significant and most visited contemporary art festival in Lithuania and the Baltic states. Kaunas Biennial stands out not only for the variety of art presented, but also for its institutional independence.

– Performing arts

• The Lithuanian Culture Institute: provides an overview of all key dance and theatre (inc. dramaturgy and circus) organisations. Check also the tab “events” for more information.

• Lithuanian Dance Information Centre (LDIC): The main task of is to spread information about dance and circus in Lithuania and abroad and support the artistic and cultural development of dance/circus art in Lithuania through networks, (international) promotional activities, and services offered for field professionals.

• Lithuanian Theatre, Music and Cinema Museum: The institution collects, preserves, researches and popularizes valuable heritage of Lithuanian and European culture history concerning theatre, music and cinema.

• ASSITEJ – Association of Children’s and Youth Theatres: The Lithuanian branch of Assitej

• Arts Printing House (Menų spaustuve): an umbrella organization for non-governmental arts organizations and one and still the only production company and venue which covers contemporary performing arts field (dance, circus, theatre etc.) in Vilnius. It also runs an international residency.

• Lithuanian theatre news portal Menų faktūra / Arts Factory: since 2005 the biggest website for those interested in the performing arts, news, reviews and trends in Lithuanian theatre. Besides news and theatre events from Lithuania and abroad, Menų faktūra also offers a comprehensive database of theatre professionals, theatrical and cultural institutions and related links.

• Lithuanian Theatre Union (LTU): an independent union and aims to represent and protect its members’ professional, labor, creative, economical and social rights and interests. Also to promote professional excellence, to take care of members of the Union employment, Lithuanian theater history heritage, to develop international theater contacts.

– Music

• The Lithuanian Culture Institute provides an overview of all key music organisations. Check also the tab “events” for more information.

• Music Information Centre Lithuania (MICL): promotes Lithuanian music at home and abroad by collecting comprehensive information on the musical culture of Lithuania in the form of an online database www.mic.lt on Lithuanian composers, songwriters, improvisers, sound artists and performers, a manuscript archive, sound archive and library.

• Lithuanian Music Business Association (LMVA): the Music Export Office of Lithuania, member of EMEE.

• The Lithuanian Composers’ Union (LCU): a non-governmental organisation of professional composers and musicologists of Lithuania.

5. Regional organisations

• Easttopics: a non-profit initiative dedicated to the promotion of the Eastern European contemporary art field. This cross-border project takes form as an expanding on-line website and database focusing on the following countries: Albania, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine.

• Organisation internationale of la Francophonie (OIF): an institution, dedicated since 1970 to promoting the French language and political, educational, economic and cultural cooperation among the 88 member countries of the OIF, among which support for Cultural Diversity. Lithuania has an observer member status.

• CEC ArtsLink advocates and supports transnational cultural mobility and collaboration, empowering artists and arts leaders to engage communities in dialogue and creative projects for a more equitable, compassionate, and sustainable world. In many of its funding programmes, it connects the USA with European and Asian countries.

• The Northern Dimension Partnership on Culture (NDPC): a governmental initiative which brings together national authorities, practitioners from cultural and creative industries (CCI) and experts. It works towards a stronger, more competitive and more resilient CCI sector that contributes significantly to the sustainable development of the Northern Dimension region (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, the Russian Federation and Sweden).

• Baltic Culture Fund: promotes cultural cooperation between Baltic States, in order to strengthen the internationalisation of Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian culture through joint cultural events.

• Baltic Nordic Circus Network (BNCN): a collaborative network of 20 circus arts organisations in the Baltic and Nordic countries. BNCN organises activities which aim to support the circus field in the Baltic-Nordic countries at large. From workshops to seminars to international residencies – for both artists and industry professionals focus on skills development, best practice, increased knowledge and cooperation as well as cultural and national identity.