Dailėtyra Vilniaus dailės akademijoje, 1980-2005
LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Baigiamieji darbai; Dailės istorijos ir teorijos katedra; Dailėtyra; Dailėtyros istorija, Lietuvos dailėtyra, studentų tiriamieji darbai; Studentai; Studentų darbai; Vilniaus dailės akademija; Art History and Theory Department; Art Studies; Art historical research; Final works of students; History of art research, Lithuanian art research, student research papers; Student theses; Students; Vilnius Academy of Art; Vilnius Academy of Fine Arts.
ENThe article presents and reflects upon the art historical research at the Vilnius Academy of Fine Arts (henceforth - VAFA) during the period of the last twenty five years. The point of departure, the 1980s, has been taken as marking the formation of the Lithuanian school of art history with the VAFA Department of Art History and Theory at its centre. Moreover, it was during this decade that the major works on the Lithuania's art were published. The article focuses on the relation between the research tendencies in student theses, professional inquiry, and challenges of international scholarship. This review shows that the VAFA school kept an eye on the global scholarship while giving preference to local subject matter. The statistics of student theses notes the upheaval of interest into the heritage of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 1990s. Today, one may say that Lithuanian art of the sixteenth-eighteenth centuries dominates agendas of the doctoral candidates, while BA and MA students focus predominantly on the twentieth century art and the contemporary art scene.The statistics of student theses placed against the background of Lithuania's cultural policy and issues prevailing in mass media reveal that undergraduates become increasingly conformist in choosing their research topics. Viewed within the perspective of professional research, one notices that students follow their independent paths. On the one hand, such a situation might have resulted from encouragement to select original subjects. On the other hand, it is a direct consequence of monopolising research fields, a habit deeply rooted in the humanities of Lithuania. Considering the school's perspectives, the greatest danger is discovered in its "self-cloning" and lack of teamwork and/or creative labs. However, the fact that more and more art historical data is being published might be viewed as a promise that art historical profession will take new approaches and will live its interpretative turn. [From the publication]
