Tadas Kazakevicius » soon to be gone

As far back as in the 1930s, during the times of the Great Depression in the United States, a group of photographers such as Walker Evans, Dorothea Lange and Jack Delano, led by Roy Stryker, Head of the Farm Security Administration (FSA), kept restlessly recording views which were soon destined to fade into obscurity. The continuous migration of people moving around in search of easier conditions of life was relentlessly changing the demographical map of the States: homesteads, villages, small towns were disappearing right before the eyes. All this was photographed and put into extensive archives – the effort of those photographers proved not to have been in vain.

A somehow different process is ongoing in the present-day Lithuania too. Neither in the scope nor the conditions of life should those two situations be compared, though something still prompts us to look for similarities.

Just within the last decade, this continuous migration has caused the population of Lithuania to shrink by almost one sixth. Towns that have usurped the whole economics and are sucking out young people to the cities, inappropriate lifestyle often adopted by the young rural generation – those who are still here – all this is inexorably changing our country. Just one question inevitably arises: for how long will our forests and valleys be adorned by views of homesteads and villages – places where a totally different understanding of time and closeness still exists? For how long will there still be found places where an unexpected visitor is met like a close relative and every passer-by is greeted with a heartfelt ‘hello’?

Every time a thought like that crosses my mind, I, as a photographer, am driven by an instinct to hurry and turn those symbols and places into something more than just memories in the stories of future grandparents. Though a recorded image is incapable of reviving what has been lost, it still lets us remember something that perhaps once, while speeding by, momentarily caught our eye at the roadside. Maybe this monument to the Lithuanian countryside will evoke some sentimentality from the viewer and touch those deeply hidden corners in the memory which we, seemingly inadvertently, have closed up, being used to accept what can be gone very quickly.

Children. Laumėnai, Ukmergė district. 2016

Sawdust repository. Reškutėnai, Švenčionys district. 2014

Village mailbox. Pasuosiai, Kupiškis district. 2014

Cleaning the flour bags. Narteikiai, Pasvalys district. 2014

Algis and Julius. Narteikiai, Pasvalys district. 2014

Milk and cabbage. Viktariškiai, Kupiškis district. 2014

Tolik and Dainius. Jokūbonys, Vilnius district. 2014

Oaks. Išlandžiai, Marijampolė district. 2015

Old graveyard. Kurtuvėnai, Šiauliai district. 2018

Jadvyga on her way to mass. Krakės, Kėdainiai district. 2014

Saint Mary and cows. Vilkyškiai, Tauragė district. 2017

Rain reservoir. Panevėžys district. 2014

Geese. Rūdninkai, Šalčininkai district. 2014

Eugenijus and Marija. Stalgonys, Šalčininkai district. 2018

Children. Vadaktėliai, Panevėžys district. 2015

Boat at yard pier. Akademija, Kėdainiai district. 2014

Jonas. Meškasalis, Alytus district. 2017

Grain. Narteikiai, Pasvalys district. 2014

Ashberries. Nevardai, Vilnius district. 2018

Broken cradle. Raseiniai district. 2015

Roadside chapel. Katiliškės, Vilnius district. 2018

Father and son. Turgeliai, Šalčininkai district. 2015

Stanislovas and his stork. Gintaučiai, Raseiniai district. 2015

Beehives. Pamerionys, Švenčionys district. 2018

Vanda and her kitten. Sabalunkos, Zarasai district. 2018

Abandoned house. Sapatiškės, Alytus district. 2018

Abandoned house. Vilnius district. 2016

Filomena. Šiaudinė, Akmenė district. 2018

Collapsing mill. Ūdekai, Pakruojis district. 2018

Book about Franklin D. Roosevelt. Raseiniai district. 2015

Abandoned house. Panevėžys district. 2014

Aldona and Stasys. Vilijampolė, Kaunas district. 2015

Cows. Barškūnai, Širvintos district. 2016

Old cottage. Kėdainiai district. 2014

Workers. Raguvėlė, Anykščiai district. 2016

DT-20. Kiemeliai, Vilnius district. 2014

Graveyard next to the rails. Kretinga, Klaipėda district. 2017

Petras and his bees. Sabalunkos, Zarasai district. 2018

Roadside chapel. Daužnagiai, Radviliškis district. 2018

Sheep resting in the shade. Dotnuva, Kėdainiai district. 2014

Sewing machine. Bružai, Šilutė district. 2018

Abandoned portrait with rosary. Piktupėnai, Pagėgiai district. 2017

Abandoned house. Vincgalys, Kėdainiai district. 2014

Winter reserves. Joteliūnai, Elektrėnai district. 2018

Saint Mary. Merkinė, Šalčininkai district. 2015

Genovaitė. Šešuolėliai II, Širvintos district. 2016

Ernestas. Višakio Rūda, Kazlų Rūda district. 2015

Bird protection. Žagatpurviai, Šilutė district. 2018

Laimutis next to his shed. Salakas, Zarasai district. 2018

Half horse. Baltoji Vokė, Šalčininkai district. 2016

Abandoned car. Rūdninkai, Šalčininkai district. 2014

Algis with a scythe. Andrioniškis, Anykščiai district. 2016

Plucked chicken. Čimbariškės, Vilnius district. 2016

Janina and her dog. Joteliūnai, Elektrėnai district. 2017

Sawdust reservoir. Viešintėlės, Anykščiai district. 2016

Private property. Mociūnai, Kėdainiai district. 2014

Henrikas beside his bathhouse. Daužnagiai, Radviliškis district. 2018

After the harvest. Stumbrės, Rietavas district. 2018

Povilas carrying hay. Alseikos, Šilutė district. 2017

Going fishing. Astruvka, Širvintos district. 2015

2017 Rusty boat. Dreverna, Klaipėda district. 2017

Stasys, window and strawberries. Pūčkoriai, Plungė district. 2017

Marijona. Viktariškiai, Kupiškis district. 2014

Bullock. Žibartoniai, Panevėžys district. 2014

Janina and her dog. Joteliūnai, Elektrėnai district. 2017

Cans. Panevėžys district. 2014

Algis on his way to the fields. Želviai, Kelmė district. 2018

Changed windows. Kėdainiai district. 2015

Stasys and his cat. Pūčkoriai, Plungė district. 2017

Stasys and his cow. Beržė, Šilalė district. 2018

Water reservoir. Narteikiai, Pasvalys district. 2014

Parish children. Krakės, Kėdainiai district. 2014

Swings. Milvydai, Kėdainiai district. 2015

Recently abandoned house. Jugintai, Kedainiai district, Lithuania.

Beekeper. Viešintos, Anykščiai district. 2016

Room. Joteliūnai, Elektrėnai district. 2017

Laundry. Gegrėnai, Telšiai district. 2017

Children. Naujieji Lažai, Kėdainiai district. 2014

Fresh milk. Jokūbonys, Vilnius district. 2014

Half House. Pikelionys, Kaunas district. 2017

Crossing. Gėlainiai, Kėdainiai district. 2014

Bathing place. Dotnuva, Kėdainiai district. 2014

Stop sign at crossing. Alksnėnai, Kėdainiai district. 2014

Abandoned house. Panevėžys district. 2014

Mowing. Abrieskai, Radviliškis district. 2018

Manor road. Daumantiškiai, Ukmergė district. 2017

As far back as in the 1930s, during the times of the Great Depression in the United States, a group of photographers such as Walker Evans, Dorothea Lange and Jack Delano, led by Roy Stryker, Head of the Farm Security Administration (FSA), kept restlessly recording views which were soon destined to fade into obscurity. The continuous migration of people moving around in search of easier conditions of life was relentlessly changing the demographical map of the States: homesteads, villages, small towns were disappearing right before the eyes. All this was photographed and put into extensive archives – the effort of those photographers proved not to have been in vain.

A somehow different process is ongoing in the present-day Lithuania too. Neither in the scope nor the conditions of life should those two situations be compared, though something still prompts us to look for similarities.

Just within the last decade, this continuous migration has caused the population of Lithuania to shrink by almost one sixth. Towns that have usurped the whole economics and are sucking out young people to the cities, inappropriate lifestyle often adopted by the young rural generation – those who are still here – all this is inexorably changing our country. Just one question inevitably arises: for how long will our forests and valleys be adorned by views of homesteads and villages – places where a totally different understanding of time and closeness still exists? For how long will there still be found places where an unexpected visitor is met like a close relative and every passer-by is greeted with a heartfelt ‘hello’?

Every time a thought like that crosses my mind, I, as a photographer, am driven by an instinct to hurry and turn those symbols and places into something more than just memories in the stories of future grandparents. Though a recorded image is incapable of reviving what has been lost, it still lets us remember something that perhaps once, while speeding by, momentarily caught our eye at the roadside. Maybe this monument to the Lithuanian countryside will evoke some sentimentality from the viewer and touch those deeply hidden corners in the memory which we, seemingly inadvertently, have closed up, being used to accept what can be gone very quickly.
Children. Laumėnai, Ukmergė district. 2016
Sawdust repository. Reškutėnai, Švenčionys district. 2014
Village mailbox. Pasuosiai, Kupiškis district. 2014
Cleaning the flour bags. Narteikiai, Pasvalys district. 2014
Algis and Julius. Narteikiai, Pasvalys district. 2014
Milk and cabbage. Viktariškiai, Kupiškis district. 2014
Tolik and Dainius. Jokūbonys, Vilnius district. 2014
Oaks. Išlandžiai, Marijampolė district. 2015
Old graveyard. Kurtuvėnai, Šiauliai district. 2018
Jadvyga on her way to mass. Krakės, Kėdainiai district. 2014
Saint Mary and cows. Vilkyškiai, Tauragė district. 2017
Rain reservoir. Panevėžys district. 2014
Geese. Rūdninkai, Šalčininkai district. 2014
Eugenijus and Marija. Stalgonys, Šalčininkai district. 2018
Children. Vadaktėliai, Panevėžys district. 2015
Boat at yard pier. Akademija, Kėdainiai district. 2014
Jonas. Meškasalis, Alytus district. 2017
Grain. Narteikiai, Pasvalys district. 2014
Ashberries. Nevardai, Vilnius district. 2018
Broken cradle. Raseiniai district. 2015
Roadside chapel. Katiliškės, Vilnius district. 2018
Father and son. Turgeliai, Šalčininkai district. 2015
Stanislovas and his stork. Gintaučiai, Raseiniai district. 2015
Beehives. Pamerionys, Švenčionys district. 2018
Vanda and her kitten. Sabalunkos, Zarasai district. 2018
Abandoned house. Sapatiškės, Alytus district. 2018
Abandoned house. Vilnius district. 2016
Filomena. Šiaudinė, Akmenė district. 2018
Collapsing mill. Ūdekai, Pakruojis district. 2018
Book about Franklin D. Roosevelt. Raseiniai district. 2015
Abandoned house. Panevėžys district. 2014
Aldona and Stasys. Vilijampolė, Kaunas district. 2015
Cows. Barškūnai, Širvintos district. 2016
Old cottage. Kėdainiai district. 2014
Workers. Raguvėlė, Anykščiai district. 2016
DT-20. Kiemeliai, Vilnius district. 2014
Graveyard next to the rails. Kretinga, Klaipėda district. 2017
Petras and his bees. Sabalunkos, Zarasai district. 2018
Roadside chapel. Daužnagiai, Radviliškis district. 2018
Sheep resting in the shade. Dotnuva, Kėdainiai district. 2014
Sewing machine. Bružai, Šilutė district. 2018
Abandoned portrait with rosary. Piktupėnai, Pagėgiai district. 2017
Abandoned house. Vincgalys, Kėdainiai district. 2014
Winter reserves. Joteliūnai, Elektrėnai district. 2018
Saint Mary. Merkinė, Šalčininkai district. 2015
Genovaitė. Šešuolėliai II, Širvintos district. 2016
Ernestas. Višakio Rūda, Kazlų Rūda district. 2015
Bird protection. Žagatpurviai, Šilutė district. 2018
Laimutis next to his shed. Salakas, Zarasai district. 2018
Half horse. Baltoji Vokė, Šalčininkai district. 2016
Abandoned car. Rūdninkai, Šalčininkai district. 2014
Algis with a scythe. Andrioniškis, Anykščiai district. 2016
Plucked chicken. Čimbariškės, Vilnius district. 2016
Janina and her dog. Joteliūnai, Elektrėnai district. 2017
Sawdust reservoir. Viešintėlės, Anykščiai district. 2016
Private property. Mociūnai, Kėdainiai district. 2014
Henrikas beside his bathhouse. Daužnagiai, Radviliškis district. 2018
After the harvest. Stumbrės, Rietavas district. 2018
Povilas carrying hay. Alseikos, Šilutė district. 2017
Going fishing. Astruvka, Širvintos district. 2015
2017 Rusty boat. Dreverna, Klaipėda district. 2017
Stasys, window and strawberries. Pūčkoriai, Plungė district. 2017
Marijona. Viktariškiai, Kupiškis district. 2014
Bullock. Žibartoniai, Panevėžys district. 2014
Janina and her dog. Joteliūnai, Elektrėnai district. 2017
Cans. Panevėžys district. 2014
Algis on his way to the fields. Želviai, Kelmė district. 2018
Changed windows. Kėdainiai district. 2015
Stasys and his cat. Pūčkoriai, Plungė district. 2017
Stasys and his cow. Beržė, Šilalė district. 2018
Water reservoir. Narteikiai, Pasvalys district. 2014
Parish children. Krakės, Kėdainiai district. 2014
Swings. Milvydai, Kėdainiai district. 2015
Recently abandoned house. Jugintai, Kedainiai district, Lithuania.
Beekeper. Viešintos, Anykščiai district. 2016
Room. Joteliūnai, Elektrėnai district. 2017
Laundry. Gegrėnai, Telšiai district. 2017
Children. Naujieji Lažai, Kėdainiai district. 2014
Fresh milk. Jokūbonys, Vilnius district. 2014
Half House. Pikelionys, Kaunas district. 2017
Crossing. Gėlainiai, Kėdainiai district. 2014
Bathing place. Dotnuva, Kėdainiai district. 2014
Stop sign at crossing. Alksnėnai, Kėdainiai district. 2014
Abandoned house. Panevėžys district. 2014
Mowing. Abrieskai, Radviliškis district. 2018
Manor road. Daumantiškiai, Ukmergė district. 2017