Traveling exhibition "The River That Built Cities"

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The second stop of the traveling exhibition is Birštonas.
The history of Panemunė settlements is closely connected to the Nemunas - the most important river in the country, which has been a route for transport, trade and cultural exchange for many centuries. The new exhibition "The River That Built Cities" invites you to actualize, remember and discuss the middle reaches of the Nemunas, from Druskininkai to Kaunas, and its cultural significance for the history of Lithuania.
The exhibition "The River That Built Cities" tells the story of the memory of river fishing in the middle reaches of the Nemunas, the craft of soul-hunting, life with the river and the development of cities by the river. The unique architectural stand created especially for this exhibition features recognizable motifs of a sailing ship, a cable-stayed bridge, or souls floating on the Nemunas, reminding us that for hundreds of years the Nemunas acted as a road or a connection that also brought coastal settlements closer and connected them.
The exhibition presents historical and urban texts, visual graphic elements, integrated urban 3D models, and is rich in interactive details that help reveal the relationship of each settlement located on the Nemunas River visited with the exhibition with the river, as well as an understanding of the significance of rivers for the formation of cities and towns, their economic relations, and social development. Visitors to the exhibition are invited to explore the Nemunas bridges and ships, ferries, hydroelectric power plants, and the most important tools used in the work of a riverman or natural and mythological objects encountered along the river's path.
Exhibition curators: Dr. Justinas Kalinauskas (exhibition concept, architecture and layouts), Dr. Gediminas Kasparavičius (historical research and texts), Romena Puikytė (communication and dissemination) Graphic design: Rasa Chmieliauskaitė (exhibition illustrations, graphic design and layout of exhibition texts)
The project is funded by: Lithuanian Council for Culture
Exhibition sponsor: MASH Studio
Exhibition partners and friends: Rumšiškės Cultural Center, Lithuanian Ethnographic Museum, Alytus Local History Museum, Birštonas Museum, Druskininkai Museum, Merkinė Regional Museum, Druskininkai Municipality Public Library, Dzūkija National Park, Birštonas Municipality, Kaišiadorys District Municipality.