Vilnius Academy of Arts (Vilnius, Lithuania)

Vilnius Academy of Arts (VAA) is the largest and oldest art university in the Baltic States, established in 1793 as an Architecture department at the Chief school of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in Vilnius. Today Academy has over 1,800 students in four cities – Vilnius, Kaunas, Telšiai and Klaipėda. Each faculty has its own unique study programs.

Vilnius faculty has a wide collection of most popular art study programs varying from Painting, Sculpture, Graphics, Photography and Media, Animation, Textile, Ceramics, Stage Art to Design programs (Graphic, Product, Fashion, Interior), Culture Management, Architecture and Restoration, Fresco-mosaic, Stained glass studies. Kaunas faculty offers Glass Art, Applied Art (Graphics, Ceramics, Textile), Design, Architecture and other study programs. Telšiai faculty is based on a solid craft competences (Metal Art and Jewellery, Furniture Design and Restoration) and the recently established Klaipėda faculty offers programs related to the most current art tendencies (Contemporary Art and Media, Graphic and Interior Design).

 

VAA is a member of international networks and associations of European higher education institutions of art and design. The diversity is brought in by international exchange programmes, such as Erasmus+ or Nordplus, ELIA, CUMULUS, Worldwide Network of Artist Residencies RES ARTIS, Worldwide Network of Architecture, Interaction Design and Textile Education ArcInTex, produces a positive effect upon the entire range of activities. Today the Academy has more than 150 Erasmus+ partners within the EU, with 60 outgoing and 60-70 incoming students each academic year. Around 40 visiting professors ensure the development of international expertise and exchange of new ideas of students and staff.

A prime example of international collaboration at the Academy is Nida Art Colony (NAC) which is a department of it with artist-in-residence, exhibition, events and education programme. Located 370 km away from Vilnius, on the Baltic Sea Coast, open all year round, it hosts workshops, intensive courses, seminars, artist talks and screenings as well as the artist-in-residence programme for experienced and emerging artists, designers, architects, curators, art critics and researchers from around the world.

Institute website

Contact

Vytautas Michelkevicius

vytautas@nidacolony.lt