Aušra Česnauskytė is a Lithuanian spatial designer/artist based in the Hague that graduated master of Interior architecture from the Royal Academy of Arts, The Hague, in 2020. With a particular focus on public space, she has constantly been zooming in and out from the globalised urban landscapes to the specific micro-scale accidents. Within her current practice, her technical background in architecture is intertwined with playful speculative designs, which intend to question our urban lifestyles and landscapes standardisation.
By creating new narratives and characters (often - workers) based on the research of the specific contexts, she celebrates the human ability to produce spontaneous and accidental situations, highlights the role of chaos within the cities and explores its potentials to shape new orders. Whether she blurs the line between reality and fiction within her designs or focuses on creating the mediums for new communities' emergence, she is passionate about bringing the eternal human need for togetherness and care to the city.
By creating new narratives and characters (often - workers) based on the research of the specific contexts, she celebrates the human ability to produce spontaneous and accidental situations, highlights the role of chaos within the cities and explores its potentials to shape new orders. Whether she blurs the line between reality and fiction within her designs or focuses on creating the mediums for new communities' emergence, she is passionate about bringing the eternal human need for togetherness and care to the city.
EDUCATION:
2021 /5-7 Online learning community course: Make Economy Yours Again, Baltan Laboratories, Eindhoven, NL
2018-2020 Master‘s degree: Interior Architecture (INSIDE), Royal Academy of Art in The Hague (KABK), NL
2013-2017 Bachelor‘s degree: Architecture, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, LT
2016 /2-6 Erasmus exchange: Architecture with specialisation in Urbanism, The University of Lisbon, PT
2012-2013 Preparatory course: Junior Architects’ and Designers’ school, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, LT
WORK EXPERIENCE:
2022 /2-7 Collaboration with the Studio Kars+Boom: Urban research and installation design. Utrecht, NL.
Supported by The Creative Industries Fund NL (Building Talent programme).
2020-... Freelance Practice: Urban research, spatial design, concept development, creative strategies, workshops.
2017–2018 /10-2 Internship at the MassLAB: Junior architect. Concept development and visualisation. Porto, PT (the link).
2016 /7-9 Internship at the Merooficina: Junior architect. Technical drawings, visualisations, 3d models. Porto, PT (the link).
WORKSHOPS:
2022 /4-10 Neo-futuristic Walks walkshops. 3h-long, for ~20 people each, organised in various cities of Europe:
Vilnius, LT - As a part of the Symposium Politics of Space.
Amsterdam, NL - As a part of the Conference Walking as Research Practice (WARP)
Brussels, BE - As a part of The Festival of the New European Bauhaus.
Kaunas, LT - As a part of Kaunas European Capital of Culture 2022 programme.
Utrecht, NL As a part of the research on the playground project Urban Jungle.
2021 /3-7 Neo-futuristic walks: Vilnius-London. A course about experimental urban research and collective imagination for two groups of students in London and Vilnius. It consisted of:
- Series of meetings online
- On-site walks (individual and collective)
- 2 performative on-site events (final results)
2019 /11 What-IF?. ~10 architecture students were introduced to the speculative design principles. Amsterdam, NL.
2019 /2 Urban CASUAL. ~15 architecture students explored the unknown site through the prism of locals. Mejorada del Campo, ES.
EVENTS & PERFORMANCES:
2021 /8 Neo-futuristic Walks: VILNIUS. A 3-hour walk for ~40 people. Naujininkai District, Vilnius, LT (the link).
2021 /6 Neo-futuristic Walks. LONDON. A 3-hour walk for ~25 people. The event was a part of the London Festival of Architecture (LFA) programme. Nine Elms District, London, UK.
2019 /6 Het WONDERLAND. Five 1-hour tours for the groups of ~15 Stanislas College students. Delft, NL.(group project)
2019 /6 The Last Supper. A 2-hour long event as the Het WONDERLAND project’s closing ceremony. I was shaped as a narrated performance with conceptually designed meals and drinks. The Hague, NL. (group project)
2018 /11 My New Workspace. A 15min-long performance presenting my research and design project about the modern times’ workers. Royal Academy of Arts in The Hague, NL.
EXHIBITIONS:
2022 /10 Politics of Space: Neo-futuristic Walks: Vilnius. Presenting the walkshop’s results. Creative hub Sodas 2123, Vilnius, LT.
2022 /6 Oslo Architecture Triennale: Neo-futuristic Walks. Virtual projects’ display. (the link).
2021 /10-11 Group exhibition of the Experiments’ Platform’s initiatives: Neo-futuristic Walks: Vilnius-London. Creative hub Sodas 2123, Vilnius, LT (the link).
2021 /10 Dutch Design Week 2021: Neo-futuristic Walks: Vilnius-London. Plan-B, Eindhoven, NL (the link).
2021 /10 Future Architecture Platform 2021: #helloeveryone. Virtual projects’ display (the link).
2020 /10 Dutch Design Week 2020: #helloeveryone. Virtual projects’ display (the link).
2020 /9 KABK graduation show 2020: #helloeveryone. The Hague, NL (the link).
2019 /1 Group Exhibition of 12 Art Residency interiors’ concepts for Goethe-Institute: The Extremely well-ordered AiR (1 of 12 proposals). Goethe Institute, Rotterdam, NL.
2019 /5 Group Exhibition. The flower industry flows in the Netherlands and China. Contributed by my individual research on human labour flow within the Netherlands’ flower industry. Guangzhou, CN.
TALKS:
2021 /6 Collective Imagination: Speculating Urban Futures in Vilnius and London. The talk was a part of a radio programme for the London Festival of Architecture (LFA). It was hosted by Martynas Germanavičius and Palanga Street Radio.
(The link).
2021 /6 HOMO CULTUS. The man and the city on neo-futurism and speculative design. A discussion hosted by Matas Šiupšinskas and Justinas Dūdėnas, National Lithuanian radio channel for culture. (The link).
2020 /11 Ideas Exchange within the theme: Future Cities. Presented master’s graduation project #helloeveryone. The talk was hosted by the What IF Lab.
2020 /10 KABK students in DDW20. The talk was hosted by Mushroom radio.
AWARDS:
2021 Building Talent Grant Creative Industries Fund NL
2020 Nominee for the best Master’s graduation project in KABK 2020.
2021 /5-7 Online learning community course: Make Economy Yours Again, Baltan Laboratories, Eindhoven, NL
2018-2020 Master‘s degree: Interior Architecture (INSIDE), Royal Academy of Art in The Hague (KABK), NL
2013-2017 Bachelor‘s degree: Architecture, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, LT
2016 /2-6 Erasmus exchange: Architecture with specialisation in Urbanism, The University of Lisbon, PT
2012-2013 Preparatory course: Junior Architects’ and Designers’ school, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, LT
WORK EXPERIENCE:
2022 /2-7 Collaboration with the Studio Kars+Boom: Urban research and installation design. Utrecht, NL.
Supported by The Creative Industries Fund NL (Building Talent programme).
2020-... Freelance Practice: Urban research, spatial design, concept development, creative strategies, workshops.
2017–2018 /10-2 Internship at the MassLAB: Junior architect. Concept development and visualisation. Porto, PT (the link).
2016 /7-9 Internship at the Merooficina: Junior architect. Technical drawings, visualisations, 3d models. Porto, PT (the link).
WORKSHOPS:
2022 /4-10 Neo-futuristic Walks walkshops. 3h-long, for ~20 people each, organised in various cities of Europe:
Vilnius, LT - As a part of the Symposium Politics of Space.
Amsterdam, NL - As a part of the Conference Walking as Research Practice (WARP)
Brussels, BE - As a part of The Festival of the New European Bauhaus.
Kaunas, LT - As a part of Kaunas European Capital of Culture 2022 programme.
Utrecht, NL As a part of the research on the playground project Urban Jungle.
2021 /3-7 Neo-futuristic walks: Vilnius-London. A course about experimental urban research and collective imagination for two groups of students in London and Vilnius. It consisted of:
- Series of meetings online
- On-site walks (individual and collective)
- 2 performative on-site events (final results)
2019 /11 What-IF?. ~10 architecture students were introduced to the speculative design principles. Amsterdam, NL.
2019 /2 Urban CASUAL. ~15 architecture students explored the unknown site through the prism of locals. Mejorada del Campo, ES.
EVENTS & PERFORMANCES:
2021 /8 Neo-futuristic Walks: VILNIUS. A 3-hour walk for ~40 people. Naujininkai District, Vilnius, LT (the link).
2021 /6 Neo-futuristic Walks. LONDON. A 3-hour walk for ~25 people. The event was a part of the London Festival of Architecture (LFA) programme. Nine Elms District, London, UK.
2019 /6 Het WONDERLAND. Five 1-hour tours for the groups of ~15 Stanislas College students. Delft, NL.(group project)
2019 /6 The Last Supper. A 2-hour long event as the Het WONDERLAND project’s closing ceremony. I was shaped as a narrated performance with conceptually designed meals and drinks. The Hague, NL. (group project)
2018 /11 My New Workspace. A 15min-long performance presenting my research and design project about the modern times’ workers. Royal Academy of Arts in The Hague, NL.
EXHIBITIONS:
2022 /10 Politics of Space: Neo-futuristic Walks: Vilnius. Presenting the walkshop’s results. Creative hub Sodas 2123, Vilnius, LT.
2022 /6 Oslo Architecture Triennale: Neo-futuristic Walks. Virtual projects’ display. (the link).
2021 /10-11 Group exhibition of the Experiments’ Platform’s initiatives: Neo-futuristic Walks: Vilnius-London. Creative hub Sodas 2123, Vilnius, LT (the link).
2021 /10 Dutch Design Week 2021: Neo-futuristic Walks: Vilnius-London. Plan-B, Eindhoven, NL (the link).
2021 /10 Future Architecture Platform 2021: #helloeveryone. Virtual projects’ display (the link).
2020 /10 Dutch Design Week 2020: #helloeveryone. Virtual projects’ display (the link).
2020 /9 KABK graduation show 2020: #helloeveryone. The Hague, NL (the link).
2019 /1 Group Exhibition of 12 Art Residency interiors’ concepts for Goethe-Institute: The Extremely well-ordered AiR (1 of 12 proposals). Goethe Institute, Rotterdam, NL.
2019 /5 Group Exhibition. The flower industry flows in the Netherlands and China. Contributed by my individual research on human labour flow within the Netherlands’ flower industry. Guangzhou, CN.
TALKS:
2021 /6 Collective Imagination: Speculating Urban Futures in Vilnius and London. The talk was a part of a radio programme for the London Festival of Architecture (LFA). It was hosted by Martynas Germanavičius and Palanga Street Radio.
(The link).
2021 /6 HOMO CULTUS. The man and the city on neo-futurism and speculative design. A discussion hosted by Matas Šiupšinskas and Justinas Dūdėnas, National Lithuanian radio channel for culture. (The link).
2020 /11 Ideas Exchange within the theme: Future Cities. Presented master’s graduation project #helloeveryone. The talk was hosted by the What IF Lab.
2020 /10 KABK students in DDW20. The talk was hosted by Mushroom radio.
AWARDS:
2021 Building Talent Grant Creative Industries Fund NL
2020 Nominee for the best Master’s graduation project in KABK 2020.