Agnė Bagdžiūnaitė conducted research on the topic “The Industrial Past of Panevėžys Today” during the “Art or Not?” residency. While investigating the industrial history and present of Panevėžys, the artist drew connections to contemporary industrialization processes such as digitization, artificial intelligence, and other technologies. Throughout the research, there was a consistent emphasis on analyzing the industrial identity of Panevėžys, utilizing institutional resources such as the local history department of the Gabrielė Petkevičaitė-Bitė library, the local history museum, and the organization “Panevėžys NOW”. Additionally, direct interviews were conducted with former employees of institutions in Panevėžys such as “Ekrane” and the meat factory.
Although many industrial stories concluded in the nineties or early two thousands, the core question remained: What lessons can we glean from former industries today? The evolving relationships between people and their work tools, as well as the shifting perceptions of the workplace, inspired the artist during the residency to craft a film script exploring the affection for machines and the connections between people and their work tools.
The artist exhibited experimental explorations and conversations in video format, accompanied by handmade cottage cheese donuts, at the canteen of the City Meat Factory. Drawing on the knowledge acquired during the residency, the research was presented at the creativity center “Pragiedruliai”.
Imaginary archive 