About
We are an interdisciplinary platform for
Our mission is to foster the cooperative development
Active as a group since 2oo7,
Initiatives
Most of our cultural, social and educational initiatives are long-term. This commitment allows to achieve sustainable positive social effects and build strong local, regional and international networks. We know for sure that placemaking, participatory development, and place management are not one-time actions; they require many years to sustain. Our main challenge is a deep emotional attachment to the places where we have been working for years.
Burbuliatorius
Soap bubbles event is arranged in the public spaces every second Monday during the warm season. Our simple scenario for revitalising public space brought together more than 32 cities and towns worldwide. It also was instrumental in bringing Lithuanian communities together to the parks and squares in the Nordic countries and the UK, creating informal places for joy for everyone who wanted to join. Tested in 2008, officially started in 2009.
Šnipiškės
We picked this wooden neighbourhood for study and placemaking initiatives as a challenge. We were fascinated by its unique, multilayered history and village-like atmosphere. At the same time, it was a neglected area with a strong negative image supported by mass media. Together with Šnipiškės inhabitants, we succeeded in revitalising public spaces, creating cultural routes and helping the local community to grow. Started in 2012, ongoing.
Co-urbanism
Co-urbanism is a learning platform in the heart of which are inclusive city development and placemaking. It is run in the form of annual forum, hands-on workshops, round tables and publishing. It brings together urban practitioners, city planners, architects, cultural and social workers, artists and communities leaders from the Baltic Sea Region and beyond for sharing caces, practices and methods. Launched in 2014 in Vilnius and Minsk, ongoing.
Tools
As cultural innovators, we develop all kinds of engaging formats, that serve miltiply purpuses:
– they are methods for better understanding the potential of the places and theirs social dynamics;
– they are communication tools fostering new networks of trust in public spaces and in the neighbourhoods;
– they are learning methods that engage various groups;
– they are creative scenarios that make places vibrant :)
Fields of Expertise and Services
Arts-based research
When analysing the use and potential of urban spaces, we utilise artistic and co-design methods to gain a deeper understanding of the place.
We employ community art to discover the area's potential and promote the development of trust networks among the users of the space. Together, we test various usage scenarios and co-design the urban space. We believe that the research process should contribute to the well-being of the users of the area - this is the primary principle upon which Laimikis activities are founded. That's why our toolbox is growing - we love developing and testing new artistic solutions for public spaces and neighbourhoods.
We participated in collective exhibitions, biennales and triennales in Berlin, Paris, Gdansk, Shenzhen, Minsk, Riga, and Vilnius.
Games and routes
We develop and launch games and cultural routes in urban and rural environments.
New routes and connections between places are capable of creating new image of the area. Spatial games are a powerful tool to redefine how people use and perceive places. City games can be a useful tool for directing and organizing large crowds during mega-event. While developing creative solutions, we identify and draw upon the local cultural and natural potencial. We enjoy cooperating with local people and learning from local knowledge!
We have developed cultural routes and urban games for UNESCO sites, and neglected areas, Romania's Centenary, and Kaunas 2022 opening.
Workshops and courses
We have over 20 years of experience in formal and informal education. We run hands-on workshops in participatory planning, urban ethnography, co-design, games design, and urban arts. We also guide schools in Urban Studies.
As lecturers and consultants, we navigate the topics of green cities and circular skills, place identity and its creative communication, cultural planning, participatory development, revitalisation of the neighbourhoods & public spaces, and many more. Our audiences are children, youngsters, adults and mixed groups.
We enjoyed running courses & workshops in Alba Iulia, Amsterdam, Antwerp, Belgrade, Berlin, Espoo, Kaunas, London, Lviv, Marseille, Minsk, Pula, Riga, Stirling, St.Petersburg, Šiauliai, Tallinn, Tbilisi, Utena, etc.
Projects
Our focus, in partnership with European institutions and organisations, is on citizen-driven cultural development of urban and rural areas. As urban practitioners, researchers and educators, we explore the role of cultural innovations, arts and non-formal education in fostering the local communities and sense of place, revitalising neglected places, and contributing to the societal resilience and activation of the local heritage. By using arts-based research we map local resources and help local organisations and people to activate them and use strategically.