Vasare + Lukas is a duo of young-generation painters, Vasarė Kuprevičiūtė (b. 2002 08 01) and Lukas Pavilonis (b. 2000 12 09). Both are students of painting at the Vilnius Academy of Arts and exhibit together as a duo. Individually, their artistic pursuits diverge, exploring distinct themes and approaches. Lukas Pavilonis is interested in the concept of time – its relativity, subjective perception, the interplay between real and painted time, their complexities and intersections. Vasarė Kuprevičiūtė focuses on the theme of sanctity, documenting manifestations of holiness in everyday life through her paintings and assembling them in the style of a kunstkammer (cabinet of curiosities). Both artists extend their creative explorations beyond painting, engaging with other media to broaden their artistic expressions. While their collaborative work introduces new meanings and contexts to their individual practices, each artist’s distinct voice remains present through their joint creations.

The duo aims to create a distinct third creative entity, independent of their individual artistic practices. Through collaboration, they explore the possibilities of painting and its interaction with space. Their works take the form of painted spatial installations, incorporating painted furniture, household objects, accessories, decorative details, clothing, and food items, brought together to form a cohesive whole and evoking the impression of a home. Functioning as stage designs or painted props, these installations serve as backdrops for both real and imagined stories. The canvases operate both as standalone pieces – intimate glimpses into daily life – and as parts of a larger orchestrated whole. When the installations are reimagined in new spaces, the arrangement of elements changes, with new elements added and objects and their accumulations taking on different narratives in their transformed context. The viewer plays a crucial role in the duo’s work. Their immersion in the space, their “settling” within it, is an essential part of the artists’ vision, completing the work and bringing it to life.

Through their vivid depictions of objects, the painters begin by narrating personal stories and experiences, almost obsessively expressing a yearning for their own space (“if we cannot have it, we can paint it”). Adopting an ironic and playful approach, they challenge the seriousness and significance attributed to art. However, the duo’s painted home installations reach beyond personal expression, touching on universal themes of home, belonging, and community. They subtly reflect on the passage of personal time within the home and the universal time flowing beyond its walls, offering commentary on daily domestic rituals and the lives shaped by them.