@gabriele_cern
Architecture and objectsgcerniavskaja@gmail.com@gabriele_cern
Varpai ir patrankos. Šiuolaikinis menas militarizacijos akivaizdoje
Oct 16 2025
Contemporary Art Centre
The architecture is grounded in notions of dual use, suspended transformation, and semi-sudden change. It operates through a logic of duality, waiting, and becoming—understood as a framework that is never fixed, but constantly shifting and reconfigurable. Architecture appears here not as a finished form, but as a condition: alert, provisional, and ready to transform.
Conceptually, the project draws on the metaphor of “bells” and “cannons”—objects that can turn into one another depending on circumstance. This duality frames architecture as an in-between state, suspended between monumentality and temporariness, between fragility and readiness. It is neither fully stable nor entirely ephemeral, but exists in a state of preparation, holding potential rather than resolution.
Spatially, the exhibition maintains both physical and sensory distance between works, allowing each to retain its individuality. Rather than a single continuous structure, the space is composed of clusters of varying scale—spontaneous yet directional assemblages, spatial “gatherings” that feel loosely accumulated rather than rigidly planned. The exhibition grows outward from a central point: Trevor Paglen’s work, which required a black box condition. From this core, plasterboard wall clusters emerged organically, with the architecture adapting and reshaping itself in response to each new work added to the system.
Material choices reinforce this process-driven logic. Fast, scenographic, ready-made materials—drywall, standard profiles, construction elements—define an architecture that is raw, mechanical, and partially monumental. Structures resemble quickly erected forms, emphasizing speed, adaptability, and impermanence over refinement. Lighting, developed in collaboration with Justas Bø, plays a crucial role in shaping atmosphere: a tense, “watchful” condition suspended between cold and warm, anticipation and unease. Aluminum fixtures reference ambiguous, weapon-like forms, while lighting typologies range from revealing stadium-style clusters and billboard-like illumination—hinting at news and visibility—to highly specific, small technical lights.
Underlying the project is a processual understanding of exhibition architecture. The architect operates as a constantly responding agent, adapting to shifting conditions rather than executing a fixed master plan. Exhibition architecture becomes a tool for unlearning rigid architectural systems, offering a release from the structures often reinforced by architectural education. Rather than locking in a final form, the space is treated as a living mass—slightly unclear, continuously negotiated—until it reaches a moment of balance or tension, the point at which the space begins to resonate.
Conceptually, the project draws on the metaphor of “bells” and “cannons”—objects that can turn into one another depending on circumstance. This duality frames architecture as an in-between state, suspended between monumentality and temporariness, between fragility and readiness. It is neither fully stable nor entirely ephemeral, but exists in a state of preparation, holding potential rather than resolution.
Spatially, the exhibition maintains both physical and sensory distance between works, allowing each to retain its individuality. Rather than a single continuous structure, the space is composed of clusters of varying scale—spontaneous yet directional assemblages, spatial “gatherings” that feel loosely accumulated rather than rigidly planned. The exhibition grows outward from a central point: Trevor Paglen’s work, which required a black box condition. From this core, plasterboard wall clusters emerged organically, with the architecture adapting and reshaping itself in response to each new work added to the system.
Material choices reinforce this process-driven logic. Fast, scenographic, ready-made materials—drywall, standard profiles, construction elements—define an architecture that is raw, mechanical, and partially monumental. Structures resemble quickly erected forms, emphasizing speed, adaptability, and impermanence over refinement. Lighting, developed in collaboration with Justas Bø, plays a crucial role in shaping atmosphere: a tense, “watchful” condition suspended between cold and warm, anticipation and unease. Aluminum fixtures reference ambiguous, weapon-like forms, while lighting typologies range from revealing stadium-style clusters and billboard-like illumination—hinting at news and visibility—to highly specific, small technical lights.
Underlying the project is a processual understanding of exhibition architecture. The architect operates as a constantly responding agent, adapting to shifting conditions rather than executing a fixed master plan. Exhibition architecture becomes a tool for unlearning rigid architectural systems, offering a release from the structures often reinforced by architectural education. Rather than locking in a final form, the space is treated as a living mass—slightly unclear, continuously negotiated—until it reaches a moment of balance or tension, the point at which the space begins to resonate.
team:
Artists:
Kateryna Aliinyk, Maithu Bùi, Anna Engelhardt and Mark Cinkevich, Forensic Architecture, Philipp Goll, Nikita Kadan, Lina Lapelytė, Bjørn Melhus, Deimantas Narkevičius, Henrike Naumann, Oleksiy Radynski, Indrė Rybakovaitė, Trevor Paglen, Sana Shahmuradova Tanska, Basma al-Sharif, Michael Stevenson, Hito Steyerl, Fedir Tetianych, Peter Wächtler, Clemens von Wedemeyer, Jan Eustachy Wolski, Tobias Zielony; and Berta Tilmantė, Neringa Rekašiūtė, Aurelija Urbonavičiūtė and Rūta Meilutytė.
Curators:
Virginija Januškevičiūtė and Valentinas Klimašauskas
Kateryna Aliinyk, Maithu Bùi, Anna Engelhardt and Mark Cinkevich, Forensic Architecture, Philipp Goll, Nikita Kadan, Lina Lapelytė, Bjørn Melhus, Deimantas Narkevičius, Henrike Naumann, Oleksiy Radynski, Indrė Rybakovaitė, Trevor Paglen, Sana Shahmuradova Tanska, Basma al-Sharif, Michael Stevenson, Hito Steyerl, Fedir Tetianych, Peter Wächtler, Clemens von Wedemeyer, Jan Eustachy Wolski, Tobias Zielony; and Berta Tilmantė, Neringa Rekašiūtė, Aurelija Urbonavičiūtė and Rūta Meilutytė.
Curators:
Virginija Januškevičiūtė and Valentinas Klimašauskas
Architect:
Gabrielė Černiavskaja
Graphic design:
Vytautas Volbekas
Light designer:
Justas Bø
Head of technical team:
Vsevolod Kovalevskij, Lukas Strolia
Technical team:
Almantas Lukoševičius, Ilona Virzinkevič, Matas Šatūnas, Kazimieras Sližys, Teodoras Malinauskas, Matas Janušonis, Rokas Janušonis, Martynas Pekarskas
Gabrielė Černiavskaja
Graphic design:
Vytautas Volbekas
Light designer:
Justas Bø
Head of technical team:
Vsevolod Kovalevskij, Lukas Strolia
Technical team:
Almantas Lukoševičius, Ilona Virzinkevič, Matas Šatūnas, Kazimieras Sližys, Teodoras Malinauskas, Matas Janušonis, Rokas Janušonis, Martynas Pekarskas
Coordinator and Curatorial team assistant:
Aistė Liuka Jonynaitė
Research assistant:
Edvardas Šumila
Coordinator of translations:
Kotryna Karyznaitė
Translators and language editors:
Paulius Balčytis, Laimonas Kinčius, Ignė Smilingytė, Veronika Vasiljeva-Niparavičienė, Eglė Elena Murauskaitė , Birgit Hoffmann, Gemma Lloyd, Dangė Vitkienė
Aistė Liuka Jonynaitė
Research assistant:
Edvardas Šumila
Coordinator of translations:
Kotryna Karyznaitė
Translators and language editors:
Paulius Balčytis, Laimonas Kinčius, Ignė Smilingytė, Veronika Vasiljeva-Niparavičienė, Eglė Elena Murauskaitė , Birgit Hoffmann, Gemma Lloyd, Dangė Vitkienė
Communication:
Karolina Augevičiūtė, Monika Valatkaitė, Gabrielė Dubauskė
Karolina Augevičiūtė, Monika Valatkaitė, Gabrielė Dubauskė