Vilija
Vitkute
Vilija Vitkute is a visual artist, photographer, body-painter, film director, paper cut artist.
She was born in 1992 in Lithuania, Klaipeda. Her mother was a piano teacher and they had home in art and music school, where Vilija grew up and learnt about arts. Already at the age of 6 Vilija had a dream to become a true artist that inspires people. In 2010 (during economic crises in the country) Vilija moved to Sweden, Dalarna, where she started to work as a professional artist.
She built up her art career and discovered bodypainting in 2013 that has changed her life. Today she is living between Sweden and South Tyrol, Alps, together with her family Johannes Stoetter and their daughter Linnea.
Vilija's art speaks about the human relationship with nature; her passion for art comes from the natural environment, travels, music and stories. She is focusing on a human body, environment protection, equal rights, climate change and other essential topics. Vilija is a multi-talented artist and she works with mixed art techniques and multidisciplinary projects.
During her artistic and bodypainting work in Scandinavia she discovered the performance and film world, which she dived into with passion. Later on it brought her rewards: the artist of the year title in Dalarna region, winning music video of the year in Sweden, and many others culture prizes.
2 TIMES WORLD BODYPAINTING CHAMPION
IN SPECIAL EFFECTS "CLEAR MIND- CLEAN PLANET" 2019
AND CAMOUFLAGE BODYPAINTING
2021
AT WORLD BODYPAINTING FESTIVAL IN KLAGENFURT AUSTRIA
About
the
artist
Vilija have created different art projects around the world, one of the most touching ones was in the barren landscapes of Arctic Circle - Lofoten and Abisko where she spend over 5 years discovering nature and has delivered a few art projects, that were recognized in international media.
Vilija has been performing and exhibiting in Venice Biennale 2015, Avesta Art, BOOM Festival, Amsterdam International Art Fair, Falun Magazinet, Peace & Love Festival, AgitAgueda 2017, 2018 and 2019, Menuo Juodaragis in Lithuania and many more festivals and venues.
In 2019 she became a mother, and 3 months after giving a birth she won the World Champion Award in the World Bodypainting Festival in Klagenfurt, Austria - 1st place in special effects category with the theme "Clear Mind - Clean Planet".
In 2019 Vilija initiated a big international project "The Memory of Water" that she is developing together with choreographer Malgorzata Sus (www.thememoryofwater.org). The artists already travelled to Norway and Sweden, and created for this project several bodypainting videos and photographies that will be a part of Vilija's exhibition at the World Bodypainting Festival 2021.
Vilija's works were seen on - VOGUE magazine, SVT, CABEL1, DAILYMAIL, VENICE Biennale, BOOM Festival, CNN, New York Post and others.
CV/BIO
Performance
2015, Avesta ART, bodypainting performance.
2015 Magasinet Falun Konst Kvadrat, photograpgy, performance. 2016 Home Of Art Amsterdam, performance
2016 Tone Art” Stockholm, photo exhibtion and performance.
2016 Waterfront Stockholm, performance.
2016 UMAMI Stockholm, performance.
2016 BOOM Portugal, performance
2016 Leksand Culture Night, performance.
2017 Normamlstorg Music street day Stockholm, performance.
2017 Arise Amazons” orianteater Stockholm.
2017 Kasai” Stockholm, performance.
2017/18 Psy‐Fi Netherlands, performance.
2017 Agitagueda Art festival Portugal, dance bodypaint performance. 2017 Linkoping pride festival, cirkus bodypaint performance.
2017 World bodypainting festival, cirkus bodypaint performance. 2018/2019 Agitagueda Art festivaL Portugal, dance bodypaint performance.
2018/2019 World bodypainting festival in Klagenfurt, performance.
2018 Menuo Juodaragis Lithuania, performance.
2021 The Memory Of Water performances at Stadtgallerie Klagenfurt.
2021 The Memory Of Water performance at Nordiska Akvarellmuseet Tjörn.
SOLO EXHBTIONS
2015 Smak och Mera, Falun
2016 Home of art “What Do we Run For”, Amsterdam
2016 Leksand Kultur Natta, Leksand
2016 Boho hotel , Stockholm
2017 Stockholm “Elements’ exhibtion in collaboration with VICE magazine, Stockholm
2018 Henningsvear klatreskole, Lofoten Norway.
2019 Lofoten Sea Skrona art festival , landscapes within exhibition
2021 Klagenfurt Stadt Gallery ,The Memory Of Water exhibtion.
GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2015, Venice Biannale, Italy.
2015 Amsterdam International Art Fair, Amsterdam.
2015 Magasinet Konst Kvadrat, Falun.
2016 Tone Art”, Stockholm.
2017 Lofoten kulturhus, Svolvær Norway.
2019 Blank Space, Oslo.
2020, Lofoten sommar exhibtion in Baldstad, solo exhibition
FILM AND VIDEOS
2013 LCTRISC music video “ Fire in the distance future” Sweden
2013 Hanna Turi “Some Kind Of Hell” Sweden.
2014 Humbugfree “Hawaii” Sweden.
2014 “Living With it” dance, art film. Iceland.
2015 “ Running Rivers” Norway, film directing, producer.
2015 “Cotton Wads” Hanna Turi, directing. Sweden
2016 Andrius Mamontovas “Tolimu Zvaigdziu sviesa. Directing. Sweden
2016 “Heavy heart” Hanna Turi, directing.
2016 “VILIJA” directing Åre, Sweden.
2016. “Art Of Iceland” Producer, asistant, model. Iceland.
2017. “ Ei Boy Nakam” Gee Dixon music video. Stockholm
2017. “Elements” AmerikaBand music video. North Sweden/Norway
2017. “Long Winter” directed , produced film by Vilija Vitkute. Stockholm
2018. "Antarctica" art video directed and created by Vilija Vitkute Gnesta.
2018. "Suppressed bodies" art video work with Norwegian composer Tine Surel Lange and dancer Thomas Voll in Norway Lofoten.
2019. "Be Water" art and dance film creation in Portugal.
2019. " Perfume" music video for Karin PARK. Costume design and bodypaint.
2019. " Dolasilla" art video for Vilija Vitkute in collaboration with dancer Malgorzata Sus.
2020. UYN shoe TV commercial , created in Switzerland.
2021. Art film creation in Iceland with The Memory Of Water.
TV SHOWS
2013. SVT Bolibumpa TV show, project.
2017 El Hormigerio work with Johannes Stoetter and Javier Bardem “Pablo Escobar ” film introduction in Madrid - link https://www.antena3internacional.com/programas/el-hormiguero/noticias/johannes-stotter-ilusion-guacamayos_201803065b0300010cf2967039edfeb7.html
2018 TV Show Italian Got Talent Final. ((bodypainting assistant and model for Johannes Stoetter)
2019 China Got Talent (bodypainting assistant for Johannes Stoetter)
2019 Kabel 1 documentary about artist Vilijas Work.
2020 British Got Talent ((bodypainting assistant for Johannes Stoetter)
2020. French got talent ( model/actress for Johannes Stoetter animal illusion show)
2021. German Got Talent ( model/actress for Johannes Stoetter animal illusion show)
AWARDS/ nominations
Vilija Stipendium 2013
Borlänge Kultur Pris 2014
Rotary pris 2014
Dalarnas Landstigets Kultur Pris 2015
Music video of the year DMA 2015
2017. “Elements” as best bodypaint video opening Bodypainting competition in Caroline theater, USA.
2017. UV effects bodypainting 5th place and Brush and Sponge 7th Place.
2018. Bodypainting team category 5th place.
2019. World bodypainting chiampion in SFX 1st place.
NOMINATIONS
2016. “Cotton Wads” Nominated music video of the year at DMA.
2019. Nomineted Dumbo Film Festival festival/iceolo film.
2019. Music chorts film festival/ Icelo film.
2019. Special Effects World Bodypainting Chiampion in Austria, Klagenfurt.
2021. World chiampion in Camoflage Bodypaitning in Austria, Klagenfurt.
Art/Bodypainting collections
2013“Other Species”
2014“Some Kind of Hell”
2014 “Living with it”
2015 “Cirkus”
2016 “What Do we Run For”
2016 “Sumakk”
2017 “Rainbow”
2017 “Elements”
2017 “Autumn”
2018 “Winter”
2018 “Frida Kahlo”
2018 “North Lights”
2018 “Long Winter”
2019 “One with nature /Camouflage”
2019 "Be Water"
2019 "Lucia"
2020 " Arctic Landscapes Within"
and more
Festival work
Peace and Love festival Borlange / years - 2014, 2015.
- Granny Goes Street Falun / -2015, 2016
-Multi culturel festival Falun. /2016
PROFFESION
Artist, visual artist, bodypainter, performing artist, film director, art director, photographer, project manager, art teacher, producer, corator.
Languages:
(mother language) Lithuanian, ( perfect) English and Swedish, (basic) Norvegian, German.
The Memory Of Water
“The Memory of Water” is a collaborative project between bodypainter Vilija Vitkute and choreographer Malgorzata Sus. It brings together different art disciplines, such as bodypainting, dance, sound composition, film, photography, visual effects and scenography, and connects them with environmental research on water and education about climate change. It is a long-term project and it is going to result in photo and video exhibitions, art and documentary films, a performance, lectures and workshops, and in the creation of the project's headquarters where artists and other guests can have a space for research and creative exchange. There are over 30 international artists involved in the project and it is being created in the Nordic region to later tour and reach audiences around the world.
The creation of the project started in September 2019. Since then Vilija and Malgorzata built the vision of a stage performance (to be premiered in 2022), gathered an international team of artists to collaborate, established connections with environmental organizations, and created first visual materials for the project - at the end of September this year they travelled to the Arctic, Lofoten Islands, where breathtaking landscapes became an inspiration and a set up for bodypainting, dance, photography and films.
