CULTURE
In spite of such modern influences
as television and radio, Lithuanian folklore continues to hand
down a rich and original heritage from generation to generation.
Lithuanian songs and a remarkable collection of fairy tales, legends,
proverbs, and aphorisms have their roots deep in a language and
culture that are among the oldest in Europe. Lithuanian folk art
is mainly embodied in ceramics, leatherwork, wood carving, and
textiles; its colouring (which tends to avoid gaudiness) and its
original geometric or floral patterns are characteristic features.
Lithuanian culture is noted
for its vibrant oral tradition, consisting of folktales, legends,
proverbs, and dainos (ancient songs). The country’s national
literature began with the long poem Metai (“The Seasons”),
by Kristijonas Donelaitis, written in the 18th century and published
posthumously in 1818. Contemporary Lithuanian writers include
the playwright Kazys Saja and the poets Tomas Venclova and Judita
Vaiciunaite. The Soviet regime forced Venclova to emigrate in
the 1970s, and he moved to the United States.
The
Vilnius drawing school, founded in 1866, has had a strong influence
on the nation's fine-arts traditions, and the composer and painter
Mikalojus Ciurlionis (d. 1911) also had a considerable influence
on contemporary forms. During the Soviet period, a realistic note
was introduced into sculpture and painting, and Lithuanian drawing,
noted for the use of natural colour and a highly refined technique,
has won international acclaim. Architecture has been affected
by a rich heritage in monuments and old buildings and by styles,
ranging from the Gothic to the Neoclassical, that have acquired
a distinctive local character.
