At the entrance of Het Groot Handelshuis, the former V&D building, you'll find a large mural by artist Kamilė Česnavičiūtė (Vilnius, Lithuania, 1996). The artwork is part of a commissioned series of murals by the University of Groningen, in collaboration with Kunstpunt, with the theme of Groningen Science. It is the first large-scale piece in Česnavičiūtė's rapidly growing body of work.
"I've never worked on paintings of this scale before. The wall is quite complex, partly because other structures are very visible. I had to obtain a special permit to operate the aerial lift to reach the top and sides of the wall. The artist duo VAAF, responsible for the Aletta Jacobs mural at Broerplein, provided me with useful tips on some technical aspects of this project. Before starting the actual mural, I sampled many colors to see how they would appear in the paint I wanted to use. I also created large painting samples in my studio to precisely determine how the paint behaves in multiple layers."
"I liked the intention behind the commission; depicting science, collaborating with the University of Groningen, and reaching the public. The way I interpret science is through research, learning, solutions, experiments, and collaboration, while we as humans are here to observe, gather, learn, and share the knowledge that arises from it. These themes and all the different departments of the University of Groningen working together truly resonate with me as an artist, and this mural represents my interpretation of it all. Hopefully, it will captivate passersby with a sense of curiosity and invite them to engage with the topics at hand, as well as ignite a desire to learn more."
This article appeared in the first edition of KUNST. magazine.