Lichtenfels Sculpture 2023: Augustas Serapinas, Greenhouse from Užupis

curated by Margherita Belcredi and Olivia Thurn-Valsassina

7 May – 29 October 2023

In its second edition Lichtenfels Sculpture presents a site-specific installation by Lithuanian artist Augustas Serapinas. Situated on the shores of the Ottenstein reservoir in Austria, near the Lichtenfels Ruin, Greenhouse from Užupis blends into the landscape and will be activated through a series of events from May - October 2023.

Serapinas‘ works are often created in direct relation to the exhibition site, tracing hidden structures or histories and making them visible. In his practice, he deliberately plays with the viewer‘s curiosity, inviting them to activate his works, while offering new perspectives on the object itself, its environment, and its history.

For Greenhouse from Užupis, Serapinas relocates a formerly abandoned greenhouse from Lithuania to the Waldviertel region. The seemingly useless and broken structure is transferred to Lichtenfels, rebuilt on site, and reactivated in a foreign environment with a new function. Like the ruins of Lichtenfels, the greenhouse no longer serves a purpose but tells stories from a different and bygone time.

In recent years Užupis - an area of Lithuania‘s capital Vilnius - has gone through a rapid gentri- fication process. The increase in property prices forces residents to abandon their homes thus shifting its locals urban habits. This leads to a continuous decrease of gardening resulting in the abandonment of greenhouses. Greenhouse from Užupis is a signifier of this ongoing process. Serapinas reveals these processes by assigning a new use to the object and its surrounding space.