Épisode #7 - "Les frontières sont des animaux nocturnes"

[00:00:30] Surviving the collapse of the existing system and then trying to build something new in a rather short period of time. [00:03:24] So for this exhibition, we were thinking that it is important to include three generations of artists like Lithuanian artists, the first of which was being born during the Soviet occupation and lived for the majority of their lives during the Soviet period and built their careers during the Soviet period. Then there is a second generation who was still born during the Soviet occupation, but built their careers after the country regained its independence in the 90s. [00:04:03] I can tell you about the work of Anastasia Sosunova, who is an artist who was born in Ignalina in Lithuania, which is kind of a peripheric town where the majority of inhabitants are Russians speakers and her family as well. And for the exhibition, we invited Anastasia to devise a new artwork and to play with the space itself. Her work is exhibited in the first room at Parai de Tokyo, where the floor is unequal. So we have kind of different levels, and for security reasons, we could not leave it open, but had to devise something. So Anastasia is continuing her research on Do It Yourself Serious. It's kind of a practice that, you know, enables you to construct your own environment from the materials that you have. [00:05:02] And in the work, she's referring to like a businessman who started his career in the 90s and build the biggest chain of Do It Yourself materials in Lithuania. And interestingly enough, this entrepreneur also devised his own religion. So the artist is kind of, you know, making a research, but also kind of thinking, what does it mean? And what is the relation between the two? And what does it do to the society? And also kind of thinks of a transitional period of a country, you know, becoming kind of surviving the collapse of existing system and then trying to build something new in a rather short period of time.