Pranas Tamašauskas | Prisiminimų spalvos

Welcome to the painting exhibition “Colours of Memories” (“Prisiminimų spalvos”) by Pranas Tamašauskas

Pranas Tamašauskas (1919 – 2005)

Pranas Tamasamašauskas began his painting career at Kaunas Art School, where he acquired basic knowledge of painting from such famous Lithuanian artists as Adomas Galdikas and Antanas Žmuidzinavičius. Later, he continued his studies at the Vilnius Art Institute (now called Vilnius Academy of Arts), where his individual style took shape. Since 1960, he has actively participated in various art exhibitions, and since 1980 he has been a member of the Lithuanian Artists’ Union.

Landscape was the basis of his work, where he could freely convey the harmony of colours, the transformation of nature and the change of seasons. The artist paid special attention to trees, which often became the main elements of his compositions, dominating the foreground, like silent observers of nature, witnessing the passage of time.

In his work, the artist drew inspiration from the places he visited and from images of Lithuanian nature in different seasons. His work reflects not only the beauty of nature, but also the artist’s inner world and his relationship with his environment. His work is predominantly realistic, but sometimes revealing the influence of impressionism or even post-impressionism.

Each painting is like a kind of visual diary, reflecting the landscapes and travel impressions of the artist. The paintings “A Road in Autumn” (“Kelias rudenį”) (1980), “Waiting for Spring” (“Laukiantys pavasario”) (1983) or “A Beautiful Autumn Day” (Graži rudens diena”) (1994) reveal not only the beauty of the landscape, but also the artist’s ability to convey moods: the melancholic seriousness of autumn or the freshness of spring.

The artist experimented with brushstrokes, textures and colours. His painting style is naturalistic, with an expressive yet subtly controlled touch. The artist’s work is characterised by a striking relationship between light and shadow which gives life, space and depth to his paintings.

The works in this retrospective exhibition include the artist’s creative development from his early paintings in 1954 to his mature works in 1988. The paintings reveal the development of his painting style, from academic realism to an increasingly free and expressive brushstroke, which became particularly pronounced around 1962. The exhibition includes both early works dominated by realistic depictions of nature and late works in which the artist focused on colour harmony and emotional expression.

Daughter Daiva Raginienė