Antanas Žmuidzinavičius (31 October 1876 - 9 August 1966) was a Lithuanian painter and art collector.
Educated at the Veiveriai Teachers' Seminary, Žmuidzinavičius worked as a teacher while pursuing art education in the evenings in Warsaw.
He further studied at the Académie Colarossi and Académie Vitti in Paris.
In 1906, he returned to Lithuania and organized the First Exhibition of Lithuanian Art and the Lithuanian Art Society which he chaired.
He also established the Vilnius Art Society which united artists of different nationalities.
In 1908-1909 and 1921-1924, he toured western Europe and the United States.
In 1919-1921 and 1924-1966, he lived and worked in Kaunas. He worked to collect, preserve, and properly exhibit works of Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis as well as to establish the Vytautas the Great War Museum.
He participated in the Lithuanian War of Independence and was a founding member of the Lithuanian Riflemen's Union.
He was chairman of the Riflemen's Union as well as chief editor of its magazine Trimitas from 1929-1934. Žmuidzinavičius taught drawing at the Kaunas Art School (renamed to Kaunas Institute of Applied and Decorative Arts in 1941 and State Art Institute of Lithuania in 1951) in 1926–1953 and at the Kaunas Polytechnic Institute in 1953–1966. He was recognized as the People's Artist of the Soviet Union in 1957.
Žmuidzinavičius created more than 2,000 pieces of art and is best known for his landscapes that create a sense of longing. He also created portraits of famous people, scenes of everyday life, religious imagery.
He also helped design the modern flag of Lithuania, created a version of the coat of arms of Lithuania that was widely used during the interwar period, designed postage stamps and Lithuanian currency banknotes. Žmuidzinavičius was an avid collector.
He donated his collections to the M. K. Čiurlionis National Art Museum in 1961 which opened the Žmuidzinavičius Museum in his former home in 1966. His collection of devils outgrew the museum and was moved to the dedicated annexe in 1982.
Two other small museums are dedicated to him in Seirijai where he was born and in Balkūnai where he grew up.
Legacy
Žmuidzinavičius Museum, a branch of the M. K. Čiurlionis National Art Museum, was established in his former home in Kaunas in February 1966.
The house, designed by architect Vytautas Landsbergis-Žemkalnis, was built in 1928 and expanded in 1938 by adding the third floor.
The first floor was rented out (for a time it was a Swedish consulate where writer Henry Parland worked), the second floor was the living quarters of the family, and the third floor was the art studio.
The house was one of the 44 modernist interwar buildings that received the European Heritage Label in 2015.
The memorial museum displays authentic interwar décor, Žmuidzinavičius' paintings and collections, and various archival items.
At that the time of the museum's opening, it had a collection of about 260 statues of the devil.
The collection steadily grew due to international donations and was moved to a newly constructed three-floor annexe in 1982.
The annexe, known as the Devils' Museum, now houses more than 3,000 devil-themed exhibits from more than 70 countries.
An album of the devils' collection was published in 1967 and 1973.
The house in Balkūnai where Žmuidzinavičius grew up was turned into a memorial museum in 1982 by his nephew the theatre historian Vytautas Maknys.
The museum displays restored furniture, photos, paintings, and other material related to the family.
Until 2017, the museum organized an annual amateur theatre festival.
The house where Žmuidzinavičius was born in Seirijai was demolished in 1938 but its location is marked by a 1.3-metre (4 ft 3 in) tall memorial stone erected in 1976.
In 1986, a room-museum dedicated to Žmuidzinavičius was opened at the high school in Seirijai.
The school was renamed in his honor in 1989.
In 1949–1966, Žmuidzinavičius spent summer vacations in a wooden villa in Palanga. The house, built by Graf Feliks Tyszkiewicz, was added to the Lithuanian Registry of Cultural Heritage in 1993.
Streets in Kaunas, Alytus, Seirijai, Miroslavas, and Balkūnai are named after Žmuidzinavičius.
Awards
Žmuidzinavičius received the following awards:
1928: Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas (3rd class);
1931: Riflemen's Star;
1932: Order of the Three Stars;
1936: Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas (2nd class);
1946: Honored Artist of the Lithuanian SSR;
1954: People's Artist of the Lithuanian SSR;
1957: People's Artist of the Soviet Union. | Source: © Wikipedia
Antanas Žmuidzinavičius (31 ottobre 1876-9 agosto 1966) è stato un pittore e collezionista d'arte Lituano. Educato al Seminario degli insegnanti di Veiveriai, Žmuidzinavičius ha lavorato come insegnante mentre si dedicava all'educazione artistica la sera a Varsavia.
Ha inoltre studiato presso l'Académie Colarossi e l'Académie Vitti di Parigi.
Nel 1906 tornò in Lituania ed organizzò la prima mostra d'arte lituana e la Società d'arte lituana da lui presieduta. Ha anche fondato la Vilnius Art Society che ha unito artisti di diverse nazionalità.
Dal 1908-1909 e 1921-1924, ha girato l'Europa occidentale e gli Stati Uniti.
Dal 1919–1921 e nel 1924–1966 visse e lavorò a Kaunas.
Ha lavorato per raccogliere, preservare ed esporre correttamente le opere di Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis e per fondare il Museo della Grande Guerra di Vytautas. Ha partecipato alla guerra d'indipendenza lituana ed è stato un membro fondatore dell'Unione dei fucilieri lituani.
Fu presidente dell'Unione dei fucilieri e caporedattore della sua rivista Trimitas dal 1929-1934.
Žmuidzinavičius insegnò disegno alla Kaunas Art School (ribattezzata Kaunas Institute of Applied and Decorative Arts nel 1941 e State Art Institute of Lithuania nel 1951) nel 1926–1953 e al Kaunas Polytechnic Institute nel 1953–1966.
È stato riconosciuto come l'artista popolare dell'Unione Sovietica nel 1957. Žmuidzinavičius ha creato più di 2.000 opere d'arte ed è meglio conosciuto per i suoi paesaggi che creano un senso di desiderio.
Ha anche creato ritratti di personaggi famosi, scene di vita quotidiana, immagini religiose. Ha anche contribuito a progettare la moderna bandiera della Lituania, ha creato una versione dello stemma della Lituania che è stato ampiamente utilizzato durante il periodo tra le due guerre, ha progettato francobolli e banconote in valuta lituana.
Žmuidzinavičius era un appassionato collezionista. Ha donato le sue collezioni al Museo Nazionale d'Arte MK Čiurlionis nel 1961 che ha aperto il Museo Žmuidzinavičius nella sua ex casa nel 1966.
La sua collezione di diavoli è diventata troppo grande rispetto al museo ed è stata spostata nell'annesso dedicato nel 1982.
A lui sono dedicati altri due piccoli musei a Seirijai dove è nato e a Balkūnai dove è cresciuto. | Source: © British Wikipedia
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