The Significance of Sculpture in Antanas Vivulskis’ Architectural Projects

Antanas Vivulskis’ (1877–1919) work in architecture is appreciated for his innovative, courageous explorations, the first manifestations of modernism in Lithuanian sacral architecture, and his influence on its further development. The article analyses Vivulskis’ work, laying a deeper focus on the significance of sculpture in his not-abundant architectural projects. The research includes an iconographic and formal investigation and a comparative method. Working on his architectural projects, Vivulskis paid particular attention to sculptural solutions, striving for an integral, iconographically unified whole. In the article, attention has been drawn to the wooden porches of the Šiluva Chapel and their decoration, which have not been sufficiently studied so far. Vivulskis treated the sculptural compositions freely, seeking a distinctive unity of form and content, an expression of real, strongly sensed religious feeling. From a formal point of view, having been influenced by Rodin and Bourdelle, they gained the characteristics of impressionistic incompleteness of forms, expressiveness (sketchy models), and the elements of Romanticism, Symbolism, Art Nouveau, and the Lithuanian National style. The article contributes to a deeper understanding of Vivulskis’ work from the perspective of the synthesis of architecture and sculpture.