(AV17) Gallery at the exclusive art fair “NADA Villa Warsaw”

For the second year in a row, contemporary sculpture, object and installation-focused (AV17) Gallery was invited to take part in the international art fair NADA Villa Warsaw, which tooked place this year from 22 to 25 May. Villa Gawrońskich in Warsaw. During the fair, (AV17) Gallery presented the works of young Lithuanian sculptor Marija Šnipaitė.

Founded in 2002 in New York, the New Art Dealers Alliance (NADA) is a dynamic non-profit organisation focused on the development and dissemination of international contemporary art. Over the years, NADA has brought together galleries, independent art spaces and art professionals, creating an international platform for artistic exchange, discovery and collaboration. Having so far held fairs in New York and Miami, in 2025 NADA will launch its first edition in New York. NADA has launched an art fair in Warsaw. “NADA Villa Warsaw”, the first of its kind in Europe, was hosted in the exclusive neo-Baroque Villa Gawrońskich in Warsaw. “Villa Warsa” organisers selected a roster of 50 participants, from 24 cities and three continents, representing dozens of contemporary artists and organisations, of which the Lithuanian sculpture field was represented by the (AV17) Gallery.

(AV17) gallery, is one of the few galleries in Lithuania presenting exclusively contemporary object, sculpture and installation art. In collaboration with well-known conceptual sculpture artists, the gallery focuses on the international representation of the artists’ work, thus promoting a wider knowledge of Lithuanian artists abroad. Since 2016, the gallery has successfully presented Lithuanian work at Positions in Berlin, VOLTA in New York and Basel, Art Karushel in Germany, Art Verona and Artissima in Italy, among others.

For the participants of the NADA Villa Warsaw fair (AV17), the gallery presented the work of Marija Šnaipaitė, a well-known sculptor and a representative of interdisciplinary art, who is actively involved in exhibitions in Lithuania and abroad. The sculptural objects presented at the fair created a symbolic dialogue with the spaces of Villa Gawrońskich. The exposition was constructed like a walk, where elements of clothing, parts of clothes, as if lost, left-behind objects were intertwined with elements of the landscape. The artist created a landscape against which the theme of fragments of clothing as a continuation of the human body and sensibility was explored. Elements of clothing, parts of garments interest the artist as spaces, territories and forms which, having lost their usual functions in the works, are reincarnated into other roles. The objects on display reveal a multifaceted use of techniques, materials and textures, which makes the whole resemble a drawing, while the sculptures resemble spots of colour. The atmosphere created by the artist distorts the usual passage of time and immerses the viewer in a minimalist, meditative space.

Marija Šnipaitė is characterised by her consistently abstracted sculptural language, associative thinking and attention to materiality. She is constantly testing the limits of sculpture by reconstructing space or combining found objects and fragile and durable materials. The artist’s creative process is based on the search for connections and the observation of the environment. Often her works do not have a final form – motifs, materials or elements from one work can be reconstructed to appear in another. This transition from one work to another emphasises the continuity of Marija Šnipaitė’s work, the integrity of her creative process and the integrity of her ideological foundation.

The “NADA Villa Warsaw” Art Fair tooked place at Villa Gawrońskich, Al. Ujazdówskie 23, Warsaw, 22 – 25 May.