Memory is our greatest asset.
Memory’s fight against oblivion is freedom’s fight against tyranny.
Prof. Vytautas Landsbergis
The main character of our story is a young girl Aldona Smetonaitė from the village of Lėnas, Taujėnai parish, Ukmergė county (now Ukmergė district), whose handicrafts, created in exile, testifies to us the memories and longing for her former life in her homeland, her ability to enjoy everyday details and her desire to create beauty even in the poor life of exile. Looking back at the episodes of Aldona’s life, we reflect on the painful fates of not only her family, but also of many other Lithuanian families who lost their previously full lives in the Homeland and suddenly became homeless. Aldona was only twelve years old when her childhood was shaken and changed by tragic events – her relatives – her brother and sister’s husband – were killed in the partisan fight, another brother who had joined the partisans was sentenced by a military tribunal and taken to a labour camp. When she was fifteen, she lost other family members as well – her mother, father and sister with little son were deported beyond the Arctic Circle. The teenage Aldona was left all alone. Having reached adulthood and being sought by the NKVD, in June 1953 she chose voluntary exile – to be closer to her family…
We cannot stop talking about what happened in Lithuania in 1940–1953. Because all this is happening again, Ukrainians are now facing a similar situation, primitive propaganda is being spread in Russia again, distorting the essential facts of Lithuanian history, even the statehood of Lithuania is being challenged, lies about the “Nazism” of the Baltic countries are being spread, so reminding us of the events of that time is more important than ever. This is exactly what we are doing, telling the story about people whose lives, like those of many other Lithuanians, began to collapse eight decades ago – in the brutal post-war years. The story of a simple and hardworking Lithuanian family that raised and patriotically educated four children, is a story of painful losses while defending Lithuania’s freedom, of long years in prisons, labour camps and exile.
The exhibition “Textiles of Exile – with Longing and Hope” tells fragments of the lives of the older and younger members of the Smetona’s family, exiles and political prisoners, supplemented by authentic exhibits. Family photos, along with the handicrafts of her mother Aldona Smetonaitė-Kontrimienė (1932–2024), created in exile, was donated to the museum in 2024 by her daughter Nijolė McClusky, who lives in the USA.
The exhibition uses materials from the Lithuanian Special Archives (KGB Archival Fund and Exile Cases Archival Fund), memories of partisans, exiles and political prisoners.
Exhibition authors Ina Dringelytė and Neringa Norvaišaitė
Pictures by I. Dringelytė