National prizes awarded to culture and arts creators and researchers
The 2023 Lithuanian National Prizes for Culture and Arts and the National Jonas Basanavičius Prize were awarded today in the Palace of the President of the Republic of Lithuania. During the ceremony, the Minister of Culture Simonas Kairys congratulated the winners and said that these prizes are not just an evaluation but also a thank-you for bravery, playfulness of imagination, for miracles on stages, in book pages and exhibition halls, and for significant contribution to the native culture and modern art.
“We are all connected by that beautiful Lithuanian “ačiū” (“thanks”). In a subtle way, it reminds us that we are all inter-connected. We all have someone to thank. We lay the foundations of life not on a void but on thick cultural layers. And we do not step into the world empty-handed either. Our support is the values instilled in families, it is our national culture, our language, our civic spirit. Your work, dear laureates, is also a very significant part of our strength. We are glad to be your contemporaries who are able to witness the power of your talent and the fire of your work”, Kairys said.
The National Jonas Basanavičius Prize was awarded to the mythologist, folklorist, Chief Research Fellow at the Department of Folk Narrative under the Institute of Lithuanian Literature and Folklore, Dr. Daiva Vaitkevičienė, for in-depth research of mythological worldview and for giving meaning to, nurturing and promoting native culture.
Writer Violeta Palčinskaitė received the Lithuanian National Prize for Culture and Arts for the playfulness of imagination in her work for multiple generations of readers and for the testifying of multifaceted experiences in memoirs; interdisciplinary artist Eglė Rakauskaitė received it for cultural paradigm-shifting work and for long-term impact on modern art; photoartist Violeta Bubelytė earned it for bravery and auto-irony in photographic one-person theatre shows; art historian, critic and exhibition curator Giedrė Jankevičiūtė received the prize for the formation of the society’s critical memory via international-calibre books and exhibitions; actress Rasa Samuolytė was awarded for the impressive acting range and for impact in theatre and cinema; composer Mindaugas Urbaitis earned it for urbanist energy and for the beauty of minimalism in scenes of music and dance.
Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Lithuania / Photo by Robertas Dačkus
Last updated: 13-03-2024