The painter Valentinas Butanavičius usually uses oil paint for his work but he likes to experiment with all kinds of materials. As the teacher he wants his students to be able to use the wide palette of material, colors, smells and aromas.
In his lessons he describes the life of a Lithuanian. If a Lithuanian observes nature in spring, he sees the crop growth process, in summer, he visits the fields and forests more, gathering crops, both physical and spiritual. In autumn, he celebrates all year round. And in winter when all work stops, he gives time for himself. Lithuanians speak about the universe as the household. The Lithuanian table has always been a sacred place. The table was the first piece of furniture brought into the house. Bread is placed on the table. Water is added. And during the winter, the drink is drunk. Most often, it is a plant drink. Today, it is called one word – tea. Lithuanian drank herbal drinks. And the teacher shows what you can do when accidentally the tea spills on a table. When a drop turns into color, and color into pictures. So his lesson is communication and a picture from the tea itself. These are pictures of the smell of tea. The paintings are created using the water casting technique. And there are natural jams: raspberry, blackberry, calendula tea, green tea brought from China. Green tea, together with various plants that grow in the fields: cornflowers, comfrey, birch buds. In a word, this is the whole general color. The main shades will be warm yellow and its shades, further pink – red and its shades and green and its shades. Brown, such an intermediate variant, which we get from rubbing different barks – oak and acorns. But the basis, if we are talking about the color itself, it would be – marigold, raspberry, cranberry, all those colors are red, green – barks are also included, yarrow, etc.
The painter uses plants from Lithuania, but also green tea from China. It is a combination with the world. The painters are in tune with the world itself. Green tea from India, China, and Japan. He cannot call Lithuanian tea, but simply a drink. Because these are natural plants, but the world is already becoming global and people live globally in that world. Our natural products, complemented by secular ones.
So the painting teacher introduces his pupils how it is possible to make art when you spill the tea and make art out of it and that you can invent something good from each of your mistakes. And what is more important is that you always feel the aroma, smell of herbs and nature.
