Five LIAA members in the 2025 LIAA mentoring program

2025-12-05

The Lithuanian Interdisciplinary Artists’ Association Mentorship Program is an initiative launched in 2023 to strengthen internal ties within the association, promote community spirit, and provide opportunities for members to share knowledge, practices, skills, and ideas. The program aims to contribute to the professional development of creators through peer learning, helping them to improve in a focused way and creating conditions for active participation in contemporary art processes.

Mentoring sessions are based on individual and group work, where emerging artists/curators meet with experienced professionals in person. The sessions create a safe environment for raising relevant professional questions and receiving feedback.

In 2025, two LIAA members participated as mentors in the program: prose writer, poet, playwright, author of various texts and interdisciplinary projects Vaiva Grainytė, and curator, researcher, and writer Neringa Bumblienė.

Artist Morta Jonynaitė studied with Vaiva Grainytė in the mentoring program. Together, the creators explored their artistic practices and directions, experimented with textual forms, delved into the creative process, reflected on artistic decisions, and sought new possibilities for expression.

In this program, Neringa Bumblienė became a mentor to two practitioners – art critic and curator Birutė Pankūnaitė and artist and curator Lina Kruopytė. Together, they delved into curatorial processes, analyzed various curatorial practice situations and their potential pitfalls, discussed different exhibitions and their concepts, and shared recommendations for relevant reading.

At the end of the mentorship, a closed group reflection session is held each year, which allows LIAA to evaluate the need for and value of this program. With the number of members growing significantly each year, LIAA plans to continue this mentorship program.

Photo: Monika Jagusinskytė.

LTMKS activities are financed by the Lithuanian Council for Culture.