Sigitas Kondratas’ exhibition Visual Improvisations

“I am not a musician, but jazz is an essential part of my life, and the camera is my instrument. In these photographs, I do not seek to document faces; I strive to capture the sound itself – its rhythm, weight, and atmosphere,” says the artist, introducing his exhibition at the Vilnius Jazz festival in Old Theatre of Vilnius.

The works of Vilnius-based photographer Kondratas represent a long-time jazz listener’s pursuit of translating music into visual form. Rather than focusing on portraits of the performers, he uses light trails and motion blur to compose visual scores.

The exhibition Visual Improvisations goes beyond the traditional boundaries of an exhibition: by scanning the QR codes next to each photograph, one can hear the authentic sound behind the captured performance. By putting headphones on, the image begins to resonate.
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Sigitas Kondratas is a member of the the Lithuanian Union of Art Photographers. He first became interested in jazz whilst still at school, when a neighbour invited him to listen to ‘different’ music. Since then, he can’t live without jazz: he began taking photographs at concerts not on commission, but for himself. He pays no heed to authority; his photographs are not portraits of the performers, but of jazz music itself.