Vladas Daškevičius

Modern threads steeped in tradition

• Vladas learned the secrets of the craft from his mother and grandmother
• He teaches where he once studied
• For him, weaving is a processing of thoughts and feelings

Vladas Daškevičius knows everything about weaving – as he says, he has been wrapped in threads since childhood. His grandmother and his mother were weavers from whom he learned all the subtleties of the craft, before studying textile arts at the Vilnius Academy of Arts. He now continues the family tradition, weaving in a small studio in Vilnius Old Town, weaving bands of impressive designs, patterned rugs and runners and other textile accessories. He also teaches at the Department of Textiles at Vilnius Academy of Arts, where he passes on his weaving secrets to students of textiles arts. He also participates in textile biennials and exhibitions. Weaving patterns for him are like an encoded language in which deeply hidden emotions can be read like acronyms – they have their meanings, but they are not easy to find and read. Weaving for Vladas Daškevičius is a way to connect old traditions with modern life.

Interview

©Vladas Daškevičius

©Vladas Daškevičius

What was your first woven piece?

When I was 14, I wove an Aukštaitian band, it is a copy of an overlay pattern – a weaving structure in which there are two wefts, a structural one and a decorative one – that float back and forth over yarns in the pattern area. I still have it and recently exhibited it in my solo show.

What interests you the most in weaving?

Creating a pattern, it is like a language. We speak using one type of language, and in weaving there is another type. It is not easy to make it talk, to reveal itself, but that emotion does exist deep down there.

What is the relationship between tradition and innovation in your work?

Weaving is like a programming of thought and feeling. It takes a lot of time, it has to be perfect, but also interesting – so that it speaks to modernity. For example, a pattern of a band may look archaic, but it should always carry some sign that will make someone turn back and rethink their modernity.

In your view, is weaving an endangered craft?

It is disappearing as a craft, but I think it has been making a comeback with new content. Not even form, but content. There is too much industrial weaving around the world and – realising that – other creative solutions emerge that require creativity, exclusivity and authenticity.

Vladas Daškevičius is a master artisan: he began his career in 1984 and he started teaching in 1984

Works

©Vladas Daškevičius

©Vladas Daškevičius

©Vladas Daškevičius

©Vladas Daškevičius

Where

Experiences

Band weaving for beginners in Vilnius

10 Hours

250 EUR per person

Rug weaving classes in Vilnius

2 Hours

50 EUR per person