CHERCHEZ LA FEMME
In 2021, during the Vilnius Night of Culture festival, a group of Vilnius residents took part in an artistic adventure. Following the hints scattered across the city and a woman they haven't seen, they had to come to a new piece of street art - a mural dedicated to the legendary Lithuanian spy Marcelė Kubiliūtė.
The synthesis of art, history and puzzles was a part of the Culture Night program designed by the art laboratory Kiaurai Sienas and the local partner NGO Idėjų Karalystė, which organizes out-of-the-box tours in Vilnius.
Since the nightwalkers had to find a spy, it was decided to supplement the search with elements not only of history but also of spy. The night watchers had not only to follow the hints and posters that repeat M. Kubiliūtė's hunt in Vilnius, occupied by Poland, but also to look for a legendary spy's daughter - a volunteer of the project, dressed in M. Kubiliūtė's favorite style. The distinguishing feature is the fox fur collar, which was one of the few signs by which the interwar Polish authorities tried to identify M. Kubiliūtė.
It was the search for a spy's mistress that became a major challenge for nightclubs. "Marcelė" repeatedly burst unnoticed, and the real restrictions of the task made it difficult to follow the spy - the lady with the fox fur could not see her persecutors, but they had the task to photograph her face. By the way, a couple of nightstanders did a great job.
After stirring a large part of Vilnius Old Town, two groups of night dwellers also found a neofresco dedicated to M. Kubiliūte on Labdarių Street. That was the last detail of the puzzle, which lasted about half an hour.
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Photo by Vincas Alesius
"It simply came to our notice then. So we were very happy to see that almost everyone who registered for it came to the event. We were even happier when both groups came to the piece, full of great mood and good impressions. We would very much like to repeat something similar, perpetuating more important women in the history of Lithuania, ”says Lina Šlipavičiūtė, the author of the neofresco and the founder of the art laboratory Kiaurai sienas.
Some of the hints of Marcelė's "hunt" are still in the Old Town of Vilnius, and passers-by can follow them independently and thus come to the neofresco.
The work of art and the Culture Night event are part of the project "Looking for a Woman", dedicated to the memory of M. Kubiliūtė. The project is funded by Vilnius City Municipality.
PROJECT TEAM
Lina Šlipavičiūtė - author of the idea, creation of the neofresco;
Rūta Norkūnė and Elena Gasiulytė - selection of information about M. Kubiliūtė, preparation of an orientation game;
Lauryna Kiškytė - poster design;
Kornelija Ukolovaitė - spy's second hand;
Aliona Bogdanova - spy mistress training, wardrobe;
Rūta Norkūnė, Šarūnas Černiauskas - Conducting the Culture Night Program;
