The theme for 2021 is urban slopes. The festival analyses the architecture, public spaces, design, and practices of combining nature and culture on the slopes of the city, with the aim of creating value-added zones and sensitively “urbanising” hitherto neglected urban spaces.

Algimantas Grigas. Object “Paslapties sodelis”

A.Žmuidzinavičius Museum of Works and Collections, 64 V.Putvinskio str.
The Antanas Žmuidzinavičius Memorial Garden is a unique green space on the second plan of V. Putvinskis Street, formed by the changes of epochs and the sincere care of the staff of the A. Žmuidzinavičius Memorial Museum [a branch of the M. K. Čiurlionis National Museum of Art]. Due to its location and irregular visiting hours, this space is virtually unknown and undiscovered, but it has a great potential to welcome and entice visitors for a more intimate and cosy interaction and encounters.

Just such a meeting was due to take place in 2020, when representatives of various disciplines [design, architecture, art history, sound art, landscape design, etc.] began to discuss and look at how to improve the garden.
Although the meeting did not take place in a secret garden, but in a virtual space marked by pandemics, the creative team easily found a consensus on the future of the garden. The main idea proposed, which was drawn up by architect Algimantas Grigas, is to maintain the character of the site, but to add a palette of plants or small architectural elements, and to install new and high-quality paving for the garage terrace, stairs and walkways. According to this concept, A. Žmuidzinavičius Garden is divided into three thematic parts, which are reflected in three perspectives. The first perspective marks the entrance, the second the intermediate space, and the third, the least used highest part of the garden, the garden and the city’s vista space.
This year, MAGENTA invites you to explore the latter space and to make use of the lightweight terraces specially built at the top of the garden. Two horizontal terraces, designed for picnics or picnics undisturbed by prying eyes, will lie beneath the existing shrubbery, which will partly provide shade and privacy, but will not obscure the distant view of the city and the slope of the other side of the river Nemunas.