Reading Samples is an exhibition curated by a student collective from the master in exhibition practices (CARE) of the Brussels’ Royal Academy of Fine Arts (ArBA-EsA). In their pedagogical program, they reflect on and explore the plural practices (or practices in the plural) surrounding the exhibition.

On a proposal by Vilnius based Indrė Urbelytė, a former Erasmus student in CARE’s master, the student collective was invited by the Kazys Varnelis House-Museum to create an exhibition based on the collection of the National Museum of Lithuania. They took this opportunity to lead an experimental and reflexive process around the museum protocols.

Taking the art of showing cultural heritage a step further, using it as an artistic impulse, they use replication as the main key concept to bound Lithuanian artifacts with their own productions.

The initial proposal was to curate a selection of objects from the museum collection. The first contact with the collection was through documents (photos, texts…) that generate physical and cultural distances. Reading Samples deals with the idea of mind projections between two spaces and countries. The act of sampling comes from this fragmentary and distanced vision of the collection. The collective decided to create an immersive sound and visual installation as well as editorial productions.

The exhibition space is metamorphosed in an open visual effects studio, which presents the selected objects of the collection, 3D printing sculptures, experimental videos, text, and sound creations recorded and assembled in Vilnius. A postcard edition records the sampling processes involved in creating the exhibition. And a series of 50 t-shirts screen printed proposes a new reading on the collection.

Opening: Wednesday, 6th of April at 6 P.M.

Exhibition at Kazys Varnelis House-Museum from April 7th to July 3rd

A proposal by Indrė Urbelytė, on an invitation of the Kazys Varnelis House-Museum

Student collective : Sarah Bazire, Romane Beau, Giorgia Calamia, Cathy Crochemar, Soa Gouvest, Inès Guffroy, Marie-Lou Laforest, PCM, Mathias Moreau, Fanny Testas, Joséphine Wagnier and Yannis Yahiaoui.

Pedagogical team : Aurélie Gravelat, Camille Lemille and Cédric Noël

With the support of Vilnius Academy of Arts and ArBA-EsA