Giedrė Jankevičiūtė

Giedrė Jankevičiūtė, an art historian and exhibition curator, holds a habilitated doctorate in art history and is a professor. She graduated from the LUSSR State Institute of Art Studies (now Vilnius Academy of Arts) in 1983, beginning her career at the Institute of History of the LUSSR Academy of Arts, before moving to the Institute of Culture and Art (now the Lithuanian Culture Research Institute). In 1994, she defended her doctoral thesis in art history, and in 2008, she completed her habilitation. Since 1995, Jankevičiūtė has been teaching at the Vilnius Academy of Arts, becoming an associate professor in 2006 and a professor in 2016. She has completed internships in Czechia, Poland, Latvia, Germany, France, and Italy. 

Jankevičiūtė’s research focuses on 20th-century Lithuanian and regional art, artistic life and its role in society, the history of cultural institutions, the intersection of art and politics, and the development of art history. She regularly contributes articles to both Lithuanian and international academic journals, actively promotes scientific knowledge within society, and has authored several monographs, including The Art and the State: the Life of Art in the Republic of Lithuania in 1918-1940 (Lith. Dailė ir valstybė: dailės gyvenimas Lietuvos Respublikoje 1918–1940) (2003), The Graphic Arts in Lithuania 1918-1940 (Lith. Lietuvos grafika 1918-1940) (2008), The Art Historian and Critic Mikalojus Vorobjovas (1903-1954) (Lith. Dailės istorikas ir kritikas Mikalojus Vorobjovas (1903-1954)) (2017; compilations and co-authored with others), Another History of the Children's Picture Book (2017; co-authored with Geetha V.; translation into German), etc.; she has compiled collections of scholarly articles, including Discovering Vilnius: Dedicated to Vladas Drėma (Lith. Atrasti Vilnių: skiriama Vladui Drėmai) (2010), The Art of Identity and Memory: Toward a Cultural History of the Two World Wars in Lithuania (2016; with Rasa Žukiene), Art History Studies, vol. 9: Uncomfortable heritage (Lith. Meno istorijos studijos, t. 9: Nepatogus paveldas) (2021); she’s created valuable teaching materials, such as Sources of Art History: From Ancient Times to the Present. Anthology (Lith. Dailės istorijos šaltiniai: nuo seniausių laikų iki mūsų dienų/ Antologija) (2012). 

G. Jankevičiūtė has curated exhibitions across memory institutions and galleries in Lithuania, Poland, Italy, Ukraine, Germany, and India, and has also published their catalogues. 

From 1990 to 1996, G. Jankevičiūtė worked in the editorial office of the journal Naujasis židinys-Aidai. She served as its chair from 2010 to 2016 and remains a member of its editorial board. She is also on the editorial boards of several journals and periodicals: Zeusi (the Naples Academy of Fine Arts, since 2022), Ars et praxis (the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre, since 2016), Numizmatika (the National Museum of Lithuania's chronicle, since 2000). She chaired the editorial board of the journal Menotyra (the National Museum of Lithuania's scientific journal) from 2009 to 2015, launched the ongoing publication Art History Studies (Lithuanian Culture Research Institute), and served on its editorial board from 2004 to 2021.

G. Jankevičiūtė actively participates in a variety of commissions, councils, and expert groups. She served as a member of the Commission for Lithuanian National Prize for Culture and Arts from 2005 to 2008, was part of the Permanent Bilateral Commission from 2005 to 2020, member of the Lithuanian Council for Culture between 2012 and 2014, and has been a member of the Council for State Awards since 2021.

G. Jankevičiūtė is a member of the International Association of Art Critics (AICA), the Association for the Advancement of Baltic Studies (AABS), the European Network for Avant-Garde and Modernism Studies (EAM), the European Society for Textual Scholarship (ESTS), and the Lithuanian Art Historians Society, where she is also a founding member. 

She has received numerous honours, including the Government Prize for Culture and Arts (2014), the Cross of the Knight of the Order for Merits to Lithuania (2019), the Lithuanian Art Historians Society's Prize Drėmos Lupa (2020), the Lithuanian National Prize for Culture and Arts (2023), and, together with Andrzej Szczerski, the Award for Art Criticism Ilgosios Formos (2024).

Photo by Dovilė Dagienė.