Vilnius downtown becomes open-air art gallery

The project "Art without a roof" aims to support artists hit by coronavirus restrictions

In order to help artists affected by quarantine restrictions, Vilnius will turn its Old Town and centre into one large open-air art gallery, the city government has announced.

During the project "Art without a roof", 100 artists will exhibit their printed works of art on 100 outdoor advertising billboards. A selection of artists’ works is currently underway. The outdoor exhibition will open on July 7 and run for three weeks. On the opening day, a map of the exhibition will be published so that Vilnius residents and guests can easily find the works on display.

The open-air exhibition will be accompanied by an online gallery, where the works of artists who are not featured on the outdoor billboards will be displayed. In this way, not only Vilnius residents but also art aficionados and collectors from other parts of the world can see them. All the works will be available for purchase.

The aim of the project is to not only rekindle the appetite for art of Vilnius residents and foreigners but also encourage them to acquire artworks, thus supporting struggling artists.

All professional artists or galleries representing them are invited to participate in the project. Paintings, graphics, ceramics, sculptures and photography are welcome – in fact, everything that can be represented by photographic means.

Free choice of theme, no participation fee 

There are no thematic constraints and any artist can decide for himself which work of art he wants to exhibit. Due to the format of outdoor billboards, organizers recommend that vertical images be a preferred choice.

One artist can participate with one work. Until June 19, participants must pick their works and submit them on the dedicated website. All - selected and unselected artists - will be notified by June 23. 

Participation in the project is free of charge. All printing and exhibition costs of the works are covered by the project organizers - Vilnius City Municipality and outdoor advertising company JCDecaux Lietuva.