BUST

BUST

“Memorable journey took place five years ago. No return ticket was guaranteed. Transfer to the Santariškės Space Station. Mammography, X-rays, biopsies, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Cycles and phases of chemo- and radiotherapy. As with the travel to the cosmos, the script is written by life support systems. We can only monitor.”

The artworks are meditations on cancer in a visual way, delicately opening up personal experiences of body and survival. In the face of a complex illness, not only body, but also the experience of the subject changes as well. It is formed by observing and capturing extraordinary transformations and metamorphoses, creating a relationship between identity and materiality. The author is concerned with the temporary and inevitable materiality of bodies, their secrets, blooms and mutations. The name “bust” refers to the bust – [French buste “bust” is also used as an abbreviation for a Lithuanian verb “busti” – to awaken.

Focus of the exhibition – video work “bust”, created in collaboration with artist Adomas Žudys, writer Lina Simutyte and composer Rūta MUR. Photogrammetry, scanning, and medical imaging-scanning techniques – x-ray and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) – were used for image reconstruction. Artwork features iconography of a woman’s breasts in paintings and sculptures from different periods. Nostalgic meditation on an impersonal attempt to understand, reflect, and rebuild oneself through visual culture.

The exhibition also presents chest tattoos (made in collaboration with Egle Tamulyte-Shaltmira, Inga Aleknavičiūte-Careful Pen and Lina White), which became wall drawings at the gallery. There are also some sculptural artefacts – colourful wigs, and scanography collages – “secrets” and herbariums created in 2015-2020. These “secrets” are a celebration of the joy of survival and a hangover. Restless sleep and awakenings while traveling.