Eglė, the Queen of the Serpents

The theme of Eglė, Queen of the Serpents is one of the central motifs in the work of Robertas Antinis’ Sr (1898–1981). The sculptor first exhibited a relief depicting Eglė in 1935 at the First Autumn Art Exhibition in Kaunas. The theme reappeared in reliefs made by him in 1941, 1944, 1947, 1955 and 1958, in a round sculpture in 1957, and finally in the famous sculpture in Palanga Park in 1958. All these works capture the same moment: Eglė is recoiling in fear after finding a snake in her blouse. Another compositional variation of Eglė holding a crown high, with a serpent coiled around her legs, is much more static. The plaster relief of 1957 demonstrates the sculptor’s desire to express Eglė’s fear and surprise at finding the serpent. This is conveyed through her expressively depicted hands, which, along with the folds of her clothes, the curls of her hair, and the coils of the snake’s body, create a restless, undulating and powerful impression. Antinis chose for the Palanga Park sculpture an even more expressive and dynamic version. Eglė is depicted balancing on one leg, with the other leg thrown out to the side and a garment flying over her head in an arc. The sculpture’s controlled volumes and expressive lines express the moment of surprise and fright.

Text author Jurgita Ludavičienė

Source: Law firm Valiunas Ellex art album MORE THAN JUST BEAUTY (2012). Compiler and author Giedrė Jankevičiūtė, THE ART OF MATERIALS. Compiler and text author Jurgita Ludavičienė
Expositions: "Free and Unfree. Lithuanian Art between 1945 and 1990", 9 September 2021 – 30 April 2022, Lithuanian Art Centre TARTLE (Užupio St. 40, Vilnius). Curators Dovilė Barcytė and Ieva Burbaitė.

The theme of Eglė, Queen of the Serpents is one of the central motifs in the work of Robertas Antinis’ Sr (1898–1981). The sculptor first exhibited a relief depicting Eglė in 1935 at the First Autumn Art Exhibition in Kaunas. The theme reappeared in reliefs made by him in 1941, 1944, 1947, 1955 and 1958, in a round sculpture in 1957, and finally in the famous sculpture in Palanga Park in 1958. All these works capture the same moment: Eglė is recoiling in fear after finding a snake in her blouse. Another compositional variation of Eglė holding a crown high, with a serpent coiled around her legs, is much more static. The plaster relief of 1957 demonstrates the sculptor’s desire to express Eglė’s fear and surprise at finding the serpent. This is conveyed through her expressively depicted hands, which, along with the folds of her clothes, the curls of her hair, and the coils of the snake’s body, create a restless, undulating and powerful impression. Antinis chose for the Palanga Park sculpture an even more expressive and dynamic version. Eglė is depicted balancing on one leg, with the other leg thrown out to the side and a garment flying over her head in an arc. The sculpture’s controlled volumes and expressive lines express the moment of surprise and fright.

Text author Jurgita Ludavičienė

Source: Law firm Valiunas Ellex art album MORE THAN JUST BEAUTY (2012). Compiler and author Giedrė Jankevičiūtė, THE ART OF MATERIALS. Compiler and text author Jurgita Ludavičienė
Expositions: "Free and Unfree. Lithuanian Art between 1945 and 1990", 9 September 2021 – 30 April 2022, Lithuanian Art Centre TARTLE (Užupio St. 40, Vilnius). Curators Dovilė Barcytė and Ieva Burbaitė.