Artist Jolita Vaitkutė: I grew up with privilege

Just recently, we shared the news that our country’s youth are the happiest in the world, and these days Eurostat announced, that in recent years hourly wages in Lithuania have grown perhaps the fastest in the European Union. You say the numbers lie? The success of a small European country is also evidenced by the experiences of prominent people in the country: the famous artist Jolita Vaitkutė claims that Lithuania’s progress in recent decades has allowed her to fulfill her dreams, and she invites Lithuanians to be braver – not only to dream, but also to share their success stories more loudly.

“I grew up with privilege and knew that the world around me was big and open. However, I have a childhood memory of having to wait at the Latvian border to go to the sea. It was not only the most real wall restricting movement, but also the wall restricting dreams. However, when growing up I realized that opportunities were open, I was able to take advantage of them,” says J. Vaitkutė, when asked how her life has changed over the past twenty years.

The artist, who is not yet thirty, but already recognized in Lithuania and the world, says that her biggest achievements are still waiting for her in the future. “20 years is a lot for me, because it is more than two-thirds of my life. When I think about my greatest accomplishments, I realize that…they haven’t come yet. I remember when, as a teenager, I lived next to the wall that limited not only movement, but also my opportunities to get to know the world, I dreamed of holding an exhibition not only in Lithuanian, but also in galleries around the world: maybe in Munich, maybe in Tokyo, maybe in Los Angeles. As I understand now, my dreams have come true. Of course, not all. But there are many opportunities for that now”, says J. Vaitkutė, whose works can currently be admired both in Lithuania, in the European Park (art installation “Coal Forest”), and in Europe, in Munich (international exhibition of artists’ works “The World in My Hand”).

“The most important moment is invisible – it is in our heads: we can dream. I grew with the European Union: not only my geographical space, but also the space of opportunities grew with me. There were more and more spaces where you could go, go on vacation, show your works or find people to work with and achieve your goals together. It taught me to think bigger. And showing that to others is very important,” she says.

As Lithuania celebrates the 20th anniversary of its membership in the European Union and NATO, J. Vaitkutė joins bcreators, athletes and other successful Lithuanian people and shares his experiences, inviting each of us to tell his success story. “We are not small: we have great artists, musicians, specialists, we have many unique stories that we can tell the whole world. We are timid, we tend to keep unique success stories inside us. I think we should be braver, speak louder about ourselves and our success and allow ourselves to dream,” she says.

You can share your success story by participating in a creative competition dedicated to the twentieth anniversary of Lithuania’s membership in the aforementioned alliances – “Lithuania’s membership in the EU and NATO: 20 years of success“. Anyone who wants to participate (alone or with a company) must film a short video clip (up to 30 seconds) in which they share their success story or talk about Lithuania’s success as a member of the EU and NATO, and send it by e-mail. by post media@lrv.lt. Great prizes and an impressive event await the 5 most creative success story tellers. More information is available On the website of the Chancellery of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania.

Press release

Authors of J. Vaitkutė’s photos: Vygaudas Juozaitis, Joana Suslavičiūtė, Gabrielius Jauniškis