Tadas Baginskas. Design counterpoints

21 May – 23 August, 2026

The exhibition is dedicated to the 90th anniversary of architect and designer Tadas Baginskas. In search of meaningful connections within Baginskas’ creative biography, the term “musical counterpoint” was chosen, which refers to combinations of independent melodies sounding together. This choice was inspired by Baginskas’ record collection, pieces of his audio equipment, the musical connections in his implemented design projects, and the rhythms of jazz and dance that have accompanied him throughout his life. The architect brothers Algimantas and Vytautas Nasvyčiai had named the group of young architects from Kaunas, including Baginskas, the “Modern Jazz Quartet”.

 

This counterpoint approach also made it possible to include other creators into the exhibition narratives, since collaboration has always been a key feature of Baginskas’ creative practice. The designer implemented quite a few projects in collaboration with his wife, glass artist and stained-glass artist Ginta Baginskienė. We have devoted a lot of attention to her work and the projects they undertook together.

 

Baginskas’ six-decade-long creative work includes furniture and lighting objects, interior design projects, exhibition design solutions, and examples of graphic design and architectural drawings. In his creative biography there are examples of mass-produced items and decorative objects classified as art design. Baginskas created using a wide variety of materials: from wood, metal, glass, and amber to rare gemstones. However, the focus of his work was not individual objects, but rather an approach to design as a systematic process connecting creators, people, and environments. The designer and architect’s biography combines Kaunas and Vilnius as well as the first experiences of the Republic of Lithuania, later the postwar period, the Soviet occupation, and the era of independence. As a professor of design, Baginskas brings together different generations of designers.

 

In our research, we searched for authentic artifacts. In most cases, they are lost or inaccessible. We wanted to showcase even the surviving fragments of those objects or segments, so we turned to interpretations by contemporary creators. The metaphorical meaning of counterpoint became particularly important, as it allowed us to speak about the duality of existence, the anonymity of design objects, and the interactions and contradictions between different perspectives. We know Tadas Baginskas as an insightful design thinker. His own quotes became an important guide to the exhibition’s narrative.

Karolina Jakaitė

 

Chief curator: Dr Karolina Jakaitė

Curators: Julijus Balčikonis, Živilė Intaitė, Karolina Jakaitė

Consultants and researchers: Dr Rasa Dargužaitė, Dr Aistė Dičkalnytė, Gražina Gurnevičiūtė, Dr Rasa Janulevičiūtė

Architect Vytautas Gečas

Graphic designer Aurelija Slapšytė

Coordinator Mažvydas Truklickas

Restorers: Arūnas Baublys, Ramūnas Gilys, Lukas Rakauskas, Donatas Stasiulis, Darius Varnas

Author of sound installation Šarūnas Nakas

Lithuanian text editor Dr Ilona Čiužauskaitė

Translator Laima Bezginaitė

 

Financed by: Lithuanian Council for Culture

Partners: Vilnius Academy of Arts, Lithuanian Design Association, LAPAS Publishing House

 

Exhibits were loaned by: Tadas Baginskas, Vytautas Brėdikis family, Dainius Liškevičius, Design Foundation, Klaipėda City Municipality, Lithuanian Artists’ Union, Lithuanian National Museum of Art, Lithuanian Central State Archives, Lithuanian Museum of Education, National M. K. Čiurlionis School of Art, National M. K. Čiurlionis Museum of Art, Vilnius Academy of Arts Museum, Vilnius Regional State Archives

 

 Thanks to: Lina Ona Adomaitytė, Ūla Ambrasaitė, Kamilė Baginskaitė, Vytenis Baura, Vakaris Bernotas, Rasa Bieliauskaitė-Mikolaitienė, Eglė Ganda Bogdanienė, Milda Brėdikytė, Eugenijus Antanas Cukermanas, Darius Čekanauskas, Juozas Brundza, Goda Dapšytė-Šlektavičienė, Audronė Drungilaitė-Čepienė, Algė Gudaitytė, Marius Iršėnas, Lolita Jablonskienė, Giedrė Jankevičiūtė, Rasa Janulevičiūtė, Dainius Juozėnas, Saulius Jusionis, Rokas Kilčiauskas, Dalia Klajumienė, Alvydas Klimas, Audrius Klimas, Arvydas Kučinskas, Skirmantė Kvietkauskienė, Elona Lubytė, Ieva Mazūraitė-Novickienė, Karolis Milaševičius, Vytautas Narbutas, Vytautas Oškinis, Diana Paliūnaitė, Aušra Petrauskaitė, Vidas Poškus, Vilma Statkienė, Donatas Stasiulis, Lina Stefanovič, Malcolm Stewart, Vadim Šamkov, Joris Šimulynas, Vaidutė Ščiglienė, Goda Šuminaitė, Lijana Turskytė-Ortiz, Austė Varnė, Paulius Vitkauskas, Gintautė Žemaitytė, Rūta Žinienė, Džiuljeta Žiugždienė

 

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