Opening of Kaunas – the European Capital of Culture 2022 greeted distinguished guests at the Bank of Lithuania building in Kaunas

This weekend, as Kaunas becomes the European Capital of Culture 2022, the installation 'Ex It' by the world-renowned artist Yoko Ono was launched in the main operations hall of the historical interwar Bank of Lithuania building in Kaunas. It is one of the openings of the series of events in 2022.

Photos by Martynas Ambrazas

Guests, including the leaders of Lithuania - the President Gitanas Nausėda, the Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė and the Speaker of the Seimas Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen - visited the Bank of Lithuania to see the installation and the unique interwar building. The Director-General of UNESCO Audrey Azoulay, Minister of Culture Simonas Kairys and other distinguished guests also paid a visit.

The 'Ex It' installation by Yoko Ono consists of 100 wooden coffins of different sizes with trees growing out of them and a sound recording of living nature. It is a powerful image of the aftermath of war or natural disaster, a metaphor for the resilience of life and the vitality of nature. According to the artist herself, "Ex It is life as a continuation". This installation is the precursor to Yoko Ono's major retrospective, which will be opened at Kaunas Picture Gallery in September this year.

The exhibition is organised by the Contemporary Art Centre together with the Serralves Museum of Contemporary Art (Porto, Portugal) and Studio One (New York) and is curated by Yoko Ono's long-time friend, curator of Jurgis Mačiūnas' and Fluxus exhibitions Jon Hendricks.

The installation will be available until 11 September, during the Bank of Lithuania's working hours (Monday to Wednesday from 8.30 to 15.30, Thursday to 18.00, Friday to 14.30). No advance registration is required, and visits are free of charge. Address: Maironio g. 25, Kaunas.

Celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2022, the Bank of Lithuania has opened its unique historical building in Kaunas to the public: residents and city guests can not only visit the installation by Yoko Ono but also come to the tours. This opportunity has attracted a lot of interest and so far all tours are fully booked, but the registration to tours for April and May will be relaunched in mid-February. The year will also be rich in other centenary events: in preparation for the official date of the establishment of the Bank of Lithuania on 2 October 1922, exhibitions, conferences and an Open Day will be held and collector coins to commemorate the occasion will be issued. Read more about centenary events