Gytis Arošius Lithuanian, b. 1996

Gytis Arošius (b. 1996, Lithuania) is a painter who graduated from Vilnius Academy of Art in 2021, obtaining a Master’s degree in Painting Studies. His work is inspired by brutalist architecture, industrial building constructions and military transport. The main characteristic of his paintings is monochromatic colour and variations of dark blue.

Gytis Arošius’s research is based on a retro-futuristic approach through which he depicts the fear of upcoming calamities and their disastrous consequences. His works often feature elements of brutalist architecture, metallic constructions and machinery with hidden human figures losing their contour among them. The artist constructs his paintings using self-taken photographs which he adjusts by inserting images of non-existing, imagined objects or historic military transport from the Cold War. Arošius creates a paranoid restless atmosphere and a sense of alienation. The paintings blend the past, the present and the future, and in this timelessness the artist seeks to discover a fixed, rational basis for explaining the existing sense of deterioration and entropy.

Gytis Arošius has participated in group exhibitions in Lithuania and Latvia.

“Brutalism spreads grotesque energy, it’s like a monument of power, which could basically withstand everything, while being harsh and unacceptable. As well it is the symbol of industrialism where functionality is a top priority. 

Nowadays, it is not uncommon for people to think about their future and become anxious. These feelings may interfere with daily routine and even lead to paranoia. Feeling worried all the time makes you confused, insecure and helpless. Uncertainty about the future and paranoia makes imagination picture the things which do not exist. Moreover, the experience of the previous generations intensifies those feelings. 

I construct my paintings using my own photographs, as I adjust them by inserting a non-existing object created by own imagination or by using historic military transport of the Cold War. People may recognize their own thoughts and feelings while looking into my paintings and get comfort by learning that these fears are more common to human race than it is an individual experience. The materialization of those feelings into the piece of art might encourage to see the situation from the different angle and evaluate to which extent these fears are rational.

Such hybrid in my paintings gets a new meaning - the storyline becomes less clear and encourages a narrative of the current situation. The paintings blend the past, the present and the future. I associate my creative work with the inner state, reflecting on the images that have been summoned by my subconscious. Nowadays, it is not uncommon for people to think about their future and become anxious and paranoid of the unknown."

- Gytis Arošius