On 25–26 of October Prof. Dr. Renaldas Gudauskas, Director General of the Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania, participated in the international conference entitled “Imagine a National Library” held at the National Library of Estonia. The event was dedicated to the 100th year anniversary of the main library of Estonia. The following were the main topics discussed at the conference: the challenges of the digital age, libraries’ engagement with society, social role of libraries, the library as a physical and virtual space, current functions and future prospects of national libraries, national libraries and cultural heritage.

The Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania invites you to watch the visual essay by Swedish artist Ingela Johansson on Gotland Communiqué – a document, signed by Lithuanians from all over the world in Katthammarsvik, island of Gotland, in August 1989, on seeking their united, vital goal − Independence of Lithuania.

On 16 October, Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania was visited by Swiss gallery owner and art collector Arminio Sciolli. The guest presented the library with the latest (3rd) edition of the photography catalogue entitled “10 Days in Locarno”. This catalogue provides a comprehensive overview of the cultural event programme which was organized during the international film festival held at the start of August in Locarno, Switzerland, and was dedicated to the centenary of the restoration of Lithuania’s state. This cultural programme included an exhibition compiled by the National Library featuring books on the history, language, literature and art of our country as well as on Lithuania’s cultural and historical links to Switzerland and the canton of Ticino, the Italian-speaking area of Switzerland.

Andrejus Vasilenko is best known for his urban exploration project entitled “This is Vilnius”. The project started back in 2014 as the author’s personal blog on Facebook which has already racked up nearly 7,000 followers. The project aims to capture the city of Vilnius, to tell alternative stories of the city, and to raise public awareness of the fine-art/investigative/documentary genre of photography. The visitors who flocked to see Andrejus Vasilenko’s personal exhibition hosted at the National Library (which was the first presentation of the project in the city of Vilnius) thanked the photographer “for the opportunity to discover a different Vilnius”.

On 4–5 October, an international symposium of the association Bibliotheca Baltica entitled “Sharing the Sources: Innovative Technologies for Libraries, Archives and Research Communities” was hosted in Rostock, Germany, in which the representatives of the memory preservation institutions, together with information technology experts, had the opportunity to discuss the latest theoretical methods for the digitization of cultural heritage and the most innovative lending methods.

The project “This is Vilnius” started back in 2014 as the author’s personal blog on Facebook, and today it has nearly 7,000 followers. The project aims to capture the city of Vilnius, to tell alternative stories of the city, and to raise public awareness of the fine-art/investigative/documentary genre of photography. The personal exhibition by photographer Andrejus Vasilenko displayed at the National Library is the first presentation of the project in the city of Vilnius.

On 27–28 September, the National Library of Azerbaijan hosted an international conference “Innovations in National Libraries as the Basis of Changes and the Direction of Development” dedicated to the 95th anniversary of the library. During its plenary session, Prof. Dr. Renaldas Gudauskas, Director General of Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania, gave a presentation entitled “National Library of Lithuania – Modern State Memory Institution”. The presentation provided an overview of the National Library’s strategy to be achieved by 2020, its activities and projects under implementation. The greatest emphasis was placed on the innovativeness of the projects implemented by the National Library. The conference focused on the experiences of the national libraries of Lithuania, Qatar and Turkey.

On 10–14 September, the Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania hosted a meeting with a delegation from the National Library of the Republic of Moldova. The delegation members included specialists of different fields.  This visit is part of the project “Institution: National Library – Potential and Opportunities”.  The project aims to strengthen cooperation with the National Library of Moldova, to share experiences of implementing library activities and creating library services at the Lithuanian National Library by promoting knowledge society.

The representatives of diplomatic missions in Lithuania gathered for an event at the Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania on Wednesday evening. Upon the invitation of the Ambassador of the Hellenic Republic in Lithuania Dr. Vassiliki Dicopoulou, the library hosted the opening of the photography exhibition entitled “Records in Memory: Recalling Moments of the Propylaea Restoration” currently on display at the National Library and a lecture titled “The Acropolis of Athens. The Process of the Monuments’ Protection” by Vasiliki Eleftheriou, Architect, Engineer, and Director of the Acropolis Restoration Service, Hellenic Ministry of Culture & Sports.

Tigran Mkrtchyan, the Ambassador of the Republic of Armenia, paid a visit to the Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania. 

An important year approaches for the National Library’s community: the library will soon mark its 100th year anniversary.  In preparation to commemorate its centenary in 2019, today the library publicly introduced its new representation video.  The video was screened today to the entire library community during the lunch break. 

The Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania invites you to participate in the lecture hosted by Vasiliki Eleftheriou, Architect Engineer, Director of the Acropolis Restoration Service, Hellenic Ministry of Culture & Sports.The lecture will present the architecture and the construction of the monuments, especially of the Parthenon, the damages and their causes, and will focus on the principles, the methodology and the results of the current restoration.

The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) Congress and General Assembly that took place in August 24–30 in Malaysia’s capital Kuala Lumpur closed with the motto “Inform, Reform, Transform”.  The conference brought together more than 3,500 delegates from over 110 countries and saw over 250 open sessions and seminars with more than 600 speakers and announcements.  IFLA President Glòria Pérez-Salmeró’s address summed up the highlights of this year’s conference: “We are the beginning of a movement... We are building a better world. Not only with nice words but through concrete steps to build a stronger, more inclusive ILFA. A trusted voice, a strong voice, a reference point for us all.” During the conference in Kuala Lumpur, the leading organization that brings together representatives of the library field presented a new organizational strategy which will ensure its sustainable development, a new IFLA governance structure and changes in the library field. 

Lithuania will host European Jewish Culture Days during the first week of autumn.   For this occasion, the Judaica Research Centre of Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania invites you to visit the exhibition “Lighting Memory” dedicated to the poet Avrom Sutskever (Abraham Sutzkever).  The author of the first published memoir of Vilnius ghetto and participant of anti-Nazi Resistance contributed to the flourishing of Jewish Vilnius and provided testimony of its destruction by immortalizing it in our memory.

After the historic forum of the Israeli and Baltic prime ministers which took place at the Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania on 24 August, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned to the library on Sunday, 26 August, for yet another, slightly more emotional meeting – an introduction to the Judaica Research Centre of the National Library’s Documentary Heritage Research Department (DHRD) and its unique collection of Jewish books and manuscripts. This stop had not been included in the official itinerary of the visit and was organised at the personal request of the prime minister, who proudly calls himself a litvak and is exceptionally interested in the past and present of the Jewish community of Lithuania and Vilnius. Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife Sarah were accompanied to the Judaica Research Centre by the Israeli ambassador to Lithuania, Amir Maimon, the Lithuanian ambassador to Israel, Edminas Bagdonas, the Lithuanian minister of foreign affairs, Linas Linkevičius, chairwoman of the Lithuanian Jewish Community, Faina Kuklianski, and journalists from both Israel and Lithuania.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continues his historic visit to Lithuania. Today, after a meeting with President Dalia Grybauskaitė at the Presidential Palace, the Israeli prime minister and members of his delegation arrived at the Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania for an informal meeting with the three prime ministers of the Baltic states.

The Locarno Festival, one of the most famous film festivals in the world, was held in Switzerland between 1–11 August 2018. The following Lithuanian films were included in the festival programme: Acid Forest (Rūgštus miškas), a documentary by director Rugilė Barzdžiukaitė, Caucasus (Kaukazas) by director Laurynas Bareiša, and Trote (Risčia, director Xacio Baño), a Spain-Lithuania production.  The event also included a presentation of other projects representing Lithuanian culture. A well-known Swiss gallery owner and art collector Arminio Sciolli organized an event entitled “10 Days in Lithuania” in Locarno at the beginning of August. It was dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the restoration of Lithuania’s independence.

Embassy of the Hellenic Republic in Vilnius collaborating with National Library of Lithuania will present photographic exhibition, where is shown the unforgettable contribution of people to the restoration of a magnificent monument.

Prof. Kęstutis Vasiliūnas, in partnership with the Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania, has announced the opening of the 8th International Artist’s Book Triennial Vilnius which revolves around the topic “Memento Mori”.  This year the exhibition has invited artists to reflect not only on the theme of impending death but also on life.

Have you ever thought what role people play in large restoration projects? Embassy of the Hellenic Republic in Vilnius collaborating with National Library of Lithuania will present photographic exhibition, where is shown the unforgettable contribution of people to the restoration of a magnificent monument.