Gintaras Makarevičius

Painter, set designer, video artist, and documentary filmmaker Gintaras Makarevičius (b. 1965, Trakai district) initially studied architecture, but after developing an interest in painting, he completed painting studies at the Lithuanian State Institute of Art (now the Vilnius Academy of Arts) in 1988–1994. In the 1990s, like many artists of his generation, he exchanged the paintbrush for a video camera (although he has continued drawing and painting to this day) and made his debut in the art field as a contemporary media artist—creating installations, objects, and documentary films. He became one of the first members of the Lithuanian Interdisciplinary Artists’ Association, founded in 1997. Since 1995, he has been teaching at the Vilnius Academy of Arts.

The artist has participated in numerous prestigious international contemporary art exhibitions, such as the “Manifesta 4” contemporary art biennial in Germany (2002) and the “La Rochelle” International Film Festival in France (2005). In 2008, G. Makarevičius received one of the most important awards in contemporary cinema: his documentary film Winter Parallels was awarded the Grand Prize at the Lugano Film Festival in Switzerland. His works have been acquired by the KIASMA Museum of Contemporary Art in Finland, the MO Museum, and private collectors, while his early series of wooden objects Hair I, II, III, IV can be seen in the permanent exhibition of the National Gallery of Art.

G. Makarevičius’ artistic activities also include scenography. Having begun his work in theatre in 1997, he is now one of Lithuania’s most prominent set designers, creating stage designs for theatres in Lithuania and abroad. In both drama and musical theatre productions, he collaborates with leading Lithuanian and international directors, including Oskaras Koršunovas, Gintaras Varnas, Jonas Vaitkus, Algirdas Latėnas, Éric Lacascade, László Bagossy, Kęstutis Jakštas, Jonas Jurašas, and others. The scenography for Bronius Kutavičius’ opera The Bear (Lokys), staged at the Klaipėda State Musical Theatre in 2022 (director Gintaras Varnas), marked his third production at this theatre; he had previously designed sets there for operas directed by Jonas Vaitkus—Claudio Monteverdi’s Orfeo (2007) and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Don Giovanni (2019).

As a set designer, G. Makarevičius has been awarded three “Golden Stage Crosses” (2008, 2012, 2013). In 2017, he was honored with the Lithuanian National Prize for Culture and Arts.