The soon-to-be-reborn Sapieha Palace: harmony of contemporary art and history
After more than 5 years of maintenance and restoration work, the reconstructed Sapieha Palace was presented. The project of its reconstruction and actualisation was managed by the Contemporary Art Centre under the Ministry of Culture. The soon-to-be-reborn palace will have spaces adapted for various visitor groups and their interests, permanent and temporary exhibitions on palace history and contemporary art.
According to the Minister of Culture Simonas Kairys, when reviving objects of cultural heritage, it is always important to not just restore but also to leverage them. The about-to-be-reborn Sapieha Palace is a beautiful example how a valuable heritage object becomes a point of attraction for the current-day people.
“Buildings such as the Sapieha Palace are full of stories. Their walls talk, there are codes in their spaces of significant turning points in our country’s history. I am certain that the new hosts and guests of this palace will be both sensitive listeners and those who create meaningful narratives here”, Kairys says. “Half a year ago, we announced that in the entire Lithuania we are opening 14 reconstructed or completely new cultural spaces. We will actively continue fulfilling this promise, and today we see one significant example of it. The restorers and the project’s implementers did everything in order for these historical spaces to be revived sensitively and respectfully, and at the same time they did not forget the needs of modern-day people”.
The official opening of Sapieha Palace is scheduled for 12–14 April, which will be followed by the exhibition Užuovėja curated by Virginija Januškevičiūtė and Edgaras Gerasimovičius. From 16 February until 11 March, tours will be organised for the public.
After implementing the investment project which was worth 11.8 million euros and was co-funded by the EU support and state budget, the maintenance work of construction and heritage protection was done and the furniture and equipment required for cultural activities were purchased at the Sapieha Palace.
Contemporary Art Centre was entrusted with the management of the Sapieha Palace. At the exhibitions, concerts and other events held in the palace’s premises, contemporary art will blend with works of the past; visitors will be able to meet with creators of contemporary art, literature, music, and film and take interest in the history of the palace itself and its environment, which will frequently be presented in new ways.
The Sapieha Palace aims to be open not just to different visitor groups but also to external initiatives. The programme includes educational sessions, tours, involvement of the Antakalnis neighbourhood’s community and Vilnius residents. Moreover, it will be sought to be ensured that the palace’s history, the visits of exhibitions and the information that contextualises them will be accessible to people with disabilities (tours with translation into sign language or adapted for the blind) and families with small children.
The project of the maintenance work of Sapieha Palace’s spaces’ reconstruction and the palace’s adoption for the needs of contemporary society was prepared by the company Projektavimo Ir Restauravimo Institutas“, general contractor was the company Ekstra Statyba, the exterior maintenance was completed by the sub-contractor, company Virmalda, while the project of exterior maintenance was prepared by the company Lietuvos Paminklai. The solutions for the interior of first-floor spaces and second-floor exhibition space were designed by the company Processoffice.
The Sapieha Palace is a significant monument of architecture, fine arts, and history: it is a part of the ensemble of the residence of the noble GDL Sapieha family, the Trinitarian Monastery and church, and later, a part of the hospital buildings or the military complex. The practical purpose and symbolic significance of the Sapieha Palace kept changing. At the end of the 17th century and for the first few decades of the 18th century, during an interesting and complicated period in the country’s history, it was a luxurious countryside residence of nobles. For a large part of its existence, this palace functioned as a shelter from the war, a military school, or a military hospital. During the Soviet times, the building was included in a military complex. For the last three decades, it stood completely empty. After meticulous research and long work of heritage restoration, the time is coming when the palace will once again be full of life.
Photo by Gintarė Grigėnaitė
Last updated: 14-03-2024