Stasys Eidrigevičius

Stasys Eidrigevičius, also known as Stasys, was born on 24th July 1949 in Mediniškiai, Lithuania. His father was a Pole and his mother - a Lithuanian. A famous painter, book illustrator, photographer, also well-known for his bookplates (Ex Libris), posters, drawings, installations and happenings.

The artist has lived in Warsaw since 1980.

In 1964-1968 he attended the class of artistic leather design in the School of Artistic Crafts in Kaunas. In 1973 he graduated from the Vilnius Institute of Fine Arts where he studied at the Faculty of Painting and Graphic Arts.

Stasys began with bookplates (Ex Libris) as well as small-scale graphic works (etchings, aquatints) and small-scale paintings (gouaches, pastels). The artist deals mainly with drawing using simple techniques like charcoal, crayons, pastel and sometimes gouaches. Stasys discovered pastel for himself in West Berlin in 1984 and it has become one of his main techniques of his works ever since.

Among the works he is appreciated and famous for are his portraits. In late 80s and early 90s was created Teatr Twarzy (Theathre of Faces) - series of pastel drawings showing faces at different stages of its disclosure. Stasys created faces hidden behind semi-transparent curtains, bandaged with rags, covered with masks of clay and paper. He makes also group portraits interpreted as metaphors of interpersonal relationships (Kłótnia / Quarrel, Bracia / Brothers).

Another well known series of his works are wooden masks and objects developed later into para-theatrical, spatial arrangements.

His first contact with theathre took place in 1993, shortly after his exhibition Historia i życie (History and Life) shown at Studio Gallery. Stasys was invited by director Jerzy Grzegorzewski from Studio Theathre to stage Stasys' play Biały Jeleń (White Deer) based on biographical facts referring to his parents and childhood memories. The artist directed it, played one of the roles, made the stage design, costumes and masks. Its narrative was composed of symbolic scenes in which real characters interacted with characters from his graphics and paintings.

His works won him a number of awards and prizes at a lot of international exhibitions and competitions, such as: the 14th International Convention of Bookplate in Portugal, Book Fair in Leipzig (1984), the 2nd International Poster Showroom in Paris (1987), the 13th International Biennale of Poster in Warsaw (1990), the 8th International Biennale of Poster in Lahti (Finland, 1998).

Among countries where his works were exhibited in are: the USA, Switzerland, Japan, the United Kingdom, Spain.

Selected individual exhibitions:

1979 - Krytyków Gallery, Warsaw

1982 - 2016 Gallery, Neuchatel, Switzerland

1984 - Mesmer Gallery, Basel

1986 - St. Xavier Gallery, Chicago

1986 - Zapiecek Gallery, Warsaw

1987 - NDA Gallery, Sapporo, Japan

1988 - National Museum, Wrocław

1990 - Creation Gallery, Tokyo

1992 - Studio Gallery, Warsaw

1992 - Retrospective Exhibition, BWA, Cracow