While the art world knows Fluxus as a New York phenomenon, its prehistory was written in the streets and courtyards of Kaunas, Lithuania. As the city prepares for its most eccentric annual event –the FLUXUS Festival on 19 September – the Kaunas IN agency presents a new addition to the “It’s Kaunastic” series: a route titled “Playing Kaunas”.
The interactive guide to the childhood city of George Maciunas, the father of the movement, was put together with Kaunas Picture Gallery, home to the Fluxus Cabinet, and Kaunas Artists’ House, the organisers of the FLUXUS Festival. It was brought to life with illustrations by Gita Balžekaitė.
The city where it all began
George Maciunas did not believe in boundaries between art and everyday life, and this new route serves as a reminder that the city is the ultimate playground for the imagination. Across 15 stops, residents and explorers will not only revisit historical facts but also receive specific instructions – known as scores – on how to turn themselves into a “24-hour factory of ideas”.
“Every global movement has its beginning: small, local, and seemingly insignificant at first. This route is an invitation to see the city through Maciunas’ eyes: here, everything is a game, and art can happen at any second,” says Raimonda Patapavičienė, Head of Tourism and Marketing at Kaunas IN. According to her, Maciunas’ memory map in Kaunas proves that the most brilliant ideas can be born simply by living: on the way to work or school, or while watching the clouds from a modernist balcony.
From an unreachable square to a pocket-sized museum
The route leads visitors through locations that may seem unexpected at first. For instance, the Amsterdam School Museum (Vytauto pr. 58) is revealed as the house where the Maciunas family lived before George was born.
Curiosity seekers are also invited to visit the Kaunas Picture Gallery, home to the Fluxus Cabinet since 1999. Upon visiting, the guide suggests a score: establish a personal museum in your own pocket by placing a found object, or even a rumour, inside it.
Other stops include the George Maciunas Square, well known to festival participants and the world’s first square that cannot be entered; the Aušra Gymnasium where the young genius studied; and the impressive Wise Old Man mural, a 440-square-metre dedication to the movement.
Instructions: How to use the city?
In her illustrations for the route, Gita Balžekaitė captures the Fluxus state: a constant state of bubbling and movement. Explorers are encouraged not just to read the text but to perform the tasks: inhale the air of Kaunas and exhale a Fluxus idea, send an invisible postcard to the past, or feel the warmth of the community’s hands at the “Fluxus Labas!” mural.
The digital version of the “Playing Kaunas” route and all the scores can be found at kaunastika.lt. Its authors believe that exploring this map is the perfect physical and spiritual warm-up for the FLUXUS Festival and the climb up Parodos Hill on 19 September.
