The Open Air Museum of Lithuania archive contains over 11 thousand drawings made during expeditions by students of the Institute of Arts (now Vilnius Academy of Arts) and the Vilnius Engineering and Construction Institute (now Vilnius Gediminas Technical University). Some of them later became famous artists and architects. The objects for the drawings were selected by museum staff. It is very important that detailed metrics and dimensions were recorded.
The archive also contains 122 drawings by one of the most famous Lithuanian artists, the original 20th century graphic artist Elvyra Kairiūkštytė (1950–2006): 63 agricultural implements, 22 household items, 15 folk architecture objects, 12 fabrics, 10 pieces of furniture. They were painted in 1973–1974 in the districts of Anykščiai, Biržai, Ignalina, Kupiškis, Panevėžys, Pasvalys, and Utena. It is likely that these are the artist’s only ethnographic drawings.
The exhibition features 52 works. They are distinguished by their precision and meticulous execution, and it is not for nothing that E. Kairiūkštytė is called a master of lines. They are like color photographs, from which it would be possible to make a copy of the drawn object.
From July 1, the exhibition will be on display at the Pušalotas house in the museum’s town.
