Hello I forward a letter from Redas Dirzys on the state of things in Alytus,
Lithuania.
Thanks to everyone,
Anya
___________________________________________________________
Letter of Thanks
To All the People Who Had Supported Alytus Art Schoolıs Fight against
Bureaucratic Treatment
Dear Friends,
On behalf of the whole community of the Art School I would like to say huge
thanks to everybody who thought about the problem, shared with your
thoughts, wrote the letters of support, protest or those with the arguments
why artistic education we need at all or clearly describing what already
happen in different places of the world after the similar intervention of
skillfully economically trained bureaucrats into the field of artistic
education and what were the results and so on. As Iıve had initially
informed all of you all the texts written by you were translated and
published in the local newspaper Alytaus Naujienos (Alytus News). Because of
the difficulties with translation the texts were published with some one-two
weeks delay during the whole June. The situation was quite unprecedented
there are not so many articles published in a local newspaper whish are
about some cultural, art life at all and there never happens any discussion
on that. Usually some episodes from political and economical life appear
criminal chronicle and thatıs it. So, the publishing of the texts created
unreal situation for the whole town, which sometimes slightly even linked to
be a sort kind media circus
But did anything really happen? The fact is that the plans to make the
reorganization are postponed to the future without any clarified dates. The
authorities just at the very beginning were trying to accuse art Schoolıs
side as having no any economical arguments to withstand to their plans
(sic!) Another much more cynic attitude was formulated to follow the first
one: the viewpoint of the State ministries or that from national art world
and art educational system are not interested local authorities anymore,
because the school is municipal and they can do whatever they wantbut all
the campaign with the letters seemed to be quite unexpected and very
irritating. They decided not to play the game (politically it was not the
right time: there were president elections in June and all the parties are
already working fro the upcoming elections to the parliament in October,
2004) and clamed up for some time. It could be considered as a victory, not
the final one, but very important one. I think that there is a very
important the way how local small problem could be paralyzed by quick global
attention towards it. And also I am very glad to see that world artistic
community is much more united then bureaucratic one.
So, I want to thank you once more for your contribution, which encouraged
local people to be brave, to resist and defend your own creed.
Good luck!
Sincerely
Redas Dirzys <[log in to unmask]>
Director of Alytus Art School
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