I found a dried-up moth on my windowsill in my studio. Two large green and purple eyes rested on its wings. I started to take pictures of it. Curiously, the patterns on its back were made of fur, and it appeared to have squares of different colours, like pixels.
From an entomologist, I borrowed one of his nocturnal moth collections – a few “tiger moths” of the Arctiinae family. Some of these genetically related Arctic moths are poisonous, making the visual puzzle between them remarkably intricate. (L. S.)
Deception, charms, and trickery are universal experiences, both among human beings and all kinds of other organisms. The phenomenon of mimicry has led to the emergence of many patterns found in nature. By resembling other species or objects in their external qualities, creatures are able to prolong their survival. Non-poisonous animals pretend to be poisonous, winged insects use their patterns to mimic the physiological traits of wild mammals, while the tigers, a species of nocturnal moth, borrow pelts from zebras and wild cats, paint themselves with bright markings, or wear the eyes of raptors. Laurynas Skeisgiela’s Liump! is an ongoing series of works aimed at creating situations for observing these ephemeral phenomena in nature and culture.
Liump! started with the creation of escape signs. Markings or combinations of spots on emergency exit signs, common in public spaces, may also be seen on bees or ladybirds. These creative practices have led to new discoveries, one of them being insect-watching.
Around 4,000 different species of moths can be found in Austria, and as many as 3,800 of them are nocturnal. In 2023, during his stay at AIR — ARTIST IN RESIDENCE Niederöstereich, Laurynas Skeisgiela combined a nocturnal moth-watching session with the Austrian Heuriger tradition, which dates back to the 18th century. The Heuriger are temporary wine bars and taverns, organised at certain times during the wine growing season. Following a centuries-old tradition, local winemakers can sell their young wine under a special license here. This format and the pleasant gatherings attract many locals and tourists. Laurynas took advantage of the coincidence that it is the scent of wine and special lighting that is used as bait in nocturnal moth-watching sessions.
According to Timo Maran, mimicry is a semiotic relationship that can easily be established between a wide variety of species in an infinite number of different circumstances. The idea of inviting both people and insects to the same table is appealing for its simplicity, its naivety, and its almost guaranteed failure.
The feast, which occurred on the night of 21 August 2023 , is presented in the exhibition in the form of a video installation. The artist invites the viewer to observe it behind a tapestry curtain among the Arctiinae moths. The mismatching fabrics were discovered in a private warehouse and pieced together like a masquerading tiger moth; some of the patterns resemble Baroque furniture, while others mimic a time in which they never existed.
Liump! Ultraviolet, Gobelin, and Wine leads to an observation space, a session with overheard conversations and thousands of moths in the Krems an der Donau cityscape.
Laurynas Skeisgiela (b. 1994) is an artist, filmmaker, and curator living in Vilnius. From 2013 to 2017, he studied at the Vilnius Academy of Arts (Department of Photography and Media Art) and the Stuttgart State Academy of Art (photography). He is a co-founder and curator at the curatorial duo and meeting room “Lokomotif” (2019–2021, together with Milda Dainovskytė), which combines contemporary art practices and strategies of urban identity formation. Recently, Laurynas (together with film director Anne Hovad Fischer) has been making a documentary musical, “To Live a Little Longer”. While cinema and curating are a collaborative space, his solo artistic practice most often takes the form of video and light installations, currently exploring mimicry in nature and culture.
Milda Dainovskytė is a contemporary art curator, lecturer, and artist. She usually chooses to hold exhibitions in spaces of personal importance or peripheral places that are not specifically intended for this purpose. Dainovskytė’s creative work is based on historical archives, sound, moving images, graphic technologies, and scents. She is a co-founder and curator at the curatorial duo and meeting space “Lokomotif” (2019–2021, together with Laurynas Skeisgiela), which combines contemporary art practices and strategies of urban identity formation.
Curator: Milda Dainovskytė.
Project director: Kotryna Džilavjan.
Graphic design: Marek Voida.
Consulting architect: Dominykas Daunys.
Analog photography lab: Spongė.
C-Print technician: Jonas Čiurlys.
Organiser: Pamėnkalnio Gallery.
Partner: Improper Walls.
Sponsors: Lithuanian Council for Culture, Vilnius City, Embassy of Lithuania in Vienna, Lithuanian Artists’ Association.
Special thanks to Darius Mikalauskas, Joana Kairienė, Andrius Sinkus, Rufcut, Martyna Šulskutė, Bon Alog, Christian Berkes, Sophie Wohlgemuth, Inès Lisser, Sandile Radebe, Klaus Krobath, Lisa Saahs, AIR – ARTIST IN RESIDENCE Niederösterreich, Lithuanian Photographers Association, Architektūros fondas.
Laurynas Skeisgiela
LIUMP!
ULTRAVIOLET, GOBELIN, AND WINE
21 August –12 September 2024
IMPROPER WALLS / Reindorfgasse 42, Wien
Photography: Laurynas Skeisgiela
