About Andrius Miezis
Artist was born in Vilnius, Lithuania in 1970.
He grew up in Vilnius, finished High School, studied architecture.
He began participating in exhibitions in 1992 and since then has been working as a free artist (except for 1998-1999, when he taught history of art at Franciscan Gymnasium in the 10-12th forms).
In 2002, received the ‘Kreis Lippe’ scholarship and spent six months on internship in Germany.
In addition to painting, Andrius Miezis spares much of his time to digital creations – digital music as well as digital photo-mixes. His first digital music CD was published in 2008. Although as he has once said: “I “play” only one instrument and that is computer“.
Exhibitions:
- Lithuanian painters exhibition in Lisburn and Dublin (Ireland) to celebrate the millennium of Lithuania (2009)
- International exhibition ‘Decentrism’ held in Vilnius railway station as part of the ‘Vilnius Capital of Culture’ project (2009)
- National exhibition ‘Without stroke’ in Arka Gallery, Vilnius, Lithuania (2008)
- Personal exhibition of paintings in A. Savickas gallery Palanga, Lithuania (2007)
- ‘Double Pleasure’ joint exhibition with Linas Liandzbergis in Siauliai Exhibition Hall, Lithuania (2007)
- Personal exhibition in gallery ‘ARTima’ Vilnius, Lithuania (2006)
- Personal exhibition in gallery ‘Ruta’ Vilnius, Lithuania (2005)
- Lithuanian Artists Association joint painters and sculptors exhibition ‘Dublin’ held in Vilnius, Lithuania (2005)
- National art exhibition ‘Romanticism tactics in modern painting’, Lithuania (2004)
- International plenèras ‘Brücke’ art collection exhibition in Vilnius Town Hall, Lithuania (2004)
- International exhibition in ‘Caisa’ gallery, Helsinki, Finland (2004)
- Personal exhibition in ‘Park’ gallery Klaipeda, Lithuania (2004)
- Group exhibition in ‘Willsons’ gallery Chicago, USA (2003)
- Personal exhibition in ‘Vartai” gallery Vilnius, Lithuania (2002)
- International exhibition ‘Kunst in der Werkstatt’, Schlitz, Germany (2001)
- International exhibition ‘Der Himmel auf Erden’, Schwalenberg, Germany (2001)
- Personal exhibition in ‘Znad Willi” gallery, Vilnius, Lithuania (2001)
- Personal exhibition in Klaipeda Exhibition Hall, Lithuania (2001)
- Kreis Lippe scholarship in Germany (2001)
- International exhibition in Bornholm City Hall, Bornholm, Denmark (2000)
- Group exhibition in ‘Arka’ gallery Vilnius, Lithuania (1999)
- Club “PINX” exhibition in Klaipeda Exhibition Hall, Lithuania (1998)
- Lithuanian art in Bosa, Italy (1998)
- Group exhibition in the gallery of Bornholm, Denmark (1998)
- Personal exhibition in ‘Kauno langas’ gallery, Lithuania (1998)
- International plenèras ‘Brücke’, Lithuania (1998)
- Personal exhibition in ‘Stikliai’ gallery Vilnius, Lithuania (1997)
- Personal exhibition in ‘Kauno langas’ gallery, Lithuania (1997)
- Personal exhibition at Klaipeda artists’ home, Lithuania (1997)
- The creative duo ‘Ū’, Siauliai Exhibition Hall, Lithuania (1995)
- Personal exhibition in ‘There’ gallery, Liepaja, Latvia (1995)
- Personal exhibition in ‘Medals’ gallery, Vilnius, Lithuania (1994)
- Personal exhibition in Tyskeviciai Palace, Kretinga, Lithuania (1993)
- Personal exhibition in ‘Langas’ gallery, Vilnius, Lithuania (1993)
- Personal exhibition in “La Boheme” gallery, Klaipeda, Lithuania (1992)
- Personal exhibition in Kaunas architects’ home (1992).
Art critics reviews:
A. Miezis’ creative identity is no longer questionable: as soon as you enter the exhibition hall you are submerged in to a specific plastics so inherent to this author, balancing between a kind of primitive poster-like art and constructive architectural sophistication. Every Andrius painting is a mise-en-scène, which has no depth and perspective. Always flat image seasoned with geometrical shapes and decorative clear spatial pauses. A. Miezis perfectly adapts expression, close to scenography or monumental painting principles, to chamber surfaces. With the assistance of the traditional ‘pug-uglies’ (with a positive charge), the author takes a fresh look at the national heritage and its adaptation. This is a sort of post-mythology, where the subject of folklore and mythical hero is adapted to unaccustomed social environment: the English names of fragments, quotations from Hollywood movies and similar titles. It is the expression typical to postmodernism. Postmodernists, in contrast to twentieth-century modernists, do not deny the past or historical significance, but recreates it instead. Through the world’s cultural-information field, postmodernists pick out details they need and create a new – already this world’s – mosaic. That is what Andrius Miezis does: reworks – or indeed creates new field of interpretations to the past, giving it a peculiar irony.
A. Miezis attempt to look at the old folk through the eyes of the modern world demonstrates the coexistence of incompatibility, opposite fields, the contrast, which is determined by the change in human values scale. At first glance, entertaining and fun pieces in fact highlights the pains of today’s society, reveals what is often hidden under the shield of the idealized world horizons or utopian visions and unrealistic dreams.
On the other hand, there lies a much deeper insight – playfully and laconically reflecting the past, Andrius Miezis, in particular, captures the attention of the changes in the present, or the world that surrounds us every day, and of whose ‘pug-uglies’ we do not to plunge into reverie anymore. Most of his works are based on conceptual art principles. As it was already highlighted, the sensitive tune of the title and plot allows author to suggest the viewer a way to ‘read’ his paintings. However, it is up to the viewer to decide whether he agrees to play the game offered by the author, or propose new rules. According to that, the life of an artwork, its perception and interpretation depends on the spectator.
Art critic, Goda Giedraityte
In his paintings one can find flexibly intertwined metaphysical trends, philosophical implications, decorativity and stylization, subtle lyricism, irony and gentle grotesque. Strong, intense colors, ornamental pictography, magnetizing decorativity, static composition, architectural and visual perspective of its lyrical strains, very strong feeling of space, hyper-realistic style of painting – this is a distinct brushwork of Andrius Miezis. It has everything!
Art section journalist, Rita Bociulyte
What makes the art works of Andrius Miezis so effective, attractive and, lets not be afraid of the word popular? First of all, they are weird but understandable. It means that when looking at them you can clearly see the limits of colors and shadows, the contours of geometric forms and objects. Expressive ideas in parallel, transversely and longitudinally mixes in the same format, unexpected plot turns… This breaking of rules should not be considered as floundering from desperate situation. However, the content belongs to the typical underground mindset, it allows to grow for the ironic beauty weed. From the first sight, the paintings of the artist may seem skittish, full of childishness. Flowers, fruits, water-drops, masked faces from exotic regions and animals. Sort of moulages of reality. As if they were made from a glop material, clear transparent tones and limpid colors. The individual parts – hands, feet, face – are like reliefs, rounded off the visual side, while the background remains flat.
In A. Miezis paintings one can feel almost tangible fourth dimension – time. It is stagnant in embryonic form.. A. Miezis paintings are near to metaphysical art trends. Lyrical image deformation and strains of painted soft plastic, broken line, decorativity and stylization, gentle irony and grotesque. Admit it, it’s an unusual alloy.
Director of Klaipeda artists home, Ignas Kazakevicius