The work of world-famous sculptor Jacques Lipchitz has returned to his native Druskininkai

The slogan of this year’s “Druskininkai – Lithuanian Capital of Culture 2025” “Touched by Čiurlionis” resonates beautifully with the already familiar confession of Jacques Lipchitz: “(…) Čiurlionis was a true genius. And I am proud to have been born in a village whose soil was touched by his feet. Our dear, unforgettable Druskininkai.”

Last week, the Druskininkai City Museum opened the exhibition “I am returning to Druskininkai”, which displays sculptures, drawings and lithographs by the world-famous artist, Litvak Jacques Lipchitz, who hails from Druskininkai, as well as paintings, drawings, lithographs and sculptures by another famous artist, Théo Tobiasse, from the collection of Dr. Shmuel Tatz. This is the first exhibition of Jacques Lipchitz in his native Druskininkai.

The opening of the event was opened by harpist Joana Daunytė, who, as Gintaras Dumčius, the director of the Druskininkai City Museum, said, the sounds of the harp played by her fingers filled the space with music that Jacques Lipchitz himself loved. Live harp music seemed to revive and make speak the sculpture “Harpists”, an important turning point in Jacques Lipchitz’ creative stage, the image of which was chosen for the invitation to the exhibition of the work of two famous Litvaks – Jacques Lipchitz and Théo Tobiasse. “I am returning to Druskininkai!” – a phrase that seems to have wings, just like the two harpists depicted in the sculpture, forming a bird with their wings spread and ready for flight.

Dossier

Chaim Jakob Lipchitz was born in 1891 to a Litvak family in Druskininkai, Lithuania, and in 1909 he went to Paris and studied at the École des Beaux-Arts and the Académie Julian. Jacques Lipchitz also became involved in the Montmartre art community, becoming friends with Pablo Picasso, Juan Gris, Diego Rivera, Amedeo Modigliani and others. In 1913, inspired by Picasso and fellow sculptor Alexander Archipenko, he began to create his first Cubist works. In 1916, Lipchitz signed a contract with the influential art dealer Léonce Rosenberg and in 1920 held his first solo exhibition at Rosenberg’s Galerie L’Effort Moderne.

In the mid-1920s, Jacques Lipchitz began to move away from Cubism and towards a figurative, emotionally expressive style – openwork sculptures that integrate and intertwine with the surrounding landscape. In 1930, Lipchitz held his first major retrospective at Jean Bucher’s Galerie de la Renaissance, and in 1937 his monumental Prometheus Strangling a Vulture was exhibited at the Paris World Exhibition. In 1940 The Nazi occupation forced the sculptor to flee Paris, and he settled in New York the following year in search of refuge. In his later career, Lipschitz became increasingly interested in mythological, biblical, and universal human themes, Jewish religious life, and the exploration of Judaism in his work. In 1946, Lipschitz was made a Chevalier of the Legion of Honor, and in 1954, the Museum of Modern Art in New York City held a retrospective exhibition of his work, which was later exhibited at the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis and the Cleveland Museum of Art. Lipschitz died in Capri, Italy, in 1973, and was buried in Jerusalem. Today, his work is collected by numerous institutions around the world: the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art in New York; the Art Institute of Chicago; the Philadelphia Museum of Art; the G. K. Walker Art Center in Minneapolis; the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.; the Tate Modern in London; Pompidou Center in Paris and Tel Aviv Museum of Art.

This exhibition in Druskininkai features six bronze sculptures by Jacques Lipchitz – 1930 “Harpists”, 1922 “Playing the Guitar” etc.; 1 ink drawing and 2 cycles – “Tree of Life” and “12 Drawings for Prometheus” – 15 lithographs and 10 paintings, 1 bronze sculpture, 1 drawing and 5 lithographs by Théo Tobiasse.

“Mano Druskininkai” information