Ornament & Baltic Modern Design 1955-1985

This catalogue accompanies the exhibition Ornament and Baltic Modern Design, 1955–1985, which took place at the Estonian Museum of Applied Art and Design from May 13 until June 14, and at the Kaunas County Public Library from August 25 until September 4. The exhibition focuses on the phenomenon known as Baltic Modernism. Through ornament, this exhibition presents moments in the history of regional modernism of three Baltic countries of closely intertwined cultural histories during the Soviet occupation. The aim is to show the similarities and variations in the designs of the three countries by introducing the principles of local modernism, when many objects and tendencies presented may not correspond to the paradigms of traditional modernism and, thus, fall into the realm of alternative histories. On the one hand, ornament carries an important role in design spheres influenced by crafts and folk arts, while on the other hand, it can also be seen as an anomaly in production systems built on rationalization. The objects shown in this exhibition belong to the collections of the Lithuanian National Museum of Art (LDM); the Latvian National Museum of Art (LNMA) and the Estonian Museum of Applied Art and Design (ETDM).