VILNIUS - Politics has long had an honorable tradition of being lampooned by caricaturists.
A good caricature helps capture the often grotesque underlying reality of politics and helps bring it down to earth with an almighty bump. In impeachment-crazy Lithuania, caricaturists have plenty to get their teeth into right now.
"Health!" - a collection of caricatures that opened in Vilnius on April 1 - is an intriguing and highly enjoyable exhibition that showcases some wonderful examples of this socially useful art form. The medical profession is the topic of this year's event, which mockingly explores the health care system, and many of the absurdities and contradictions it embodies.
The exhibition is an annual event that's been going on since 1968. "Health" has works by some of the best caricaturists in Lithuanian, including Jonas Varnas, caricaturist for Lietuvos Rytas, the biggest daily in Lithuania, and others.
What is it that makes caricatures so universally popular? Is it that they satisfy some secret wish to make fun of people and expose their worst characteristics? The exhibition's curator Roma Surviliene thinks that the pictures are "something that's actual." They show ideas that can be understood instantly by going straight for the jugular.
In "Health" some of the caricatures poke fun at popular perceptions of those doctors that we all know and love. One picture shows a doctor with his pockets stuffed full of money who says to his patient: "Your health is my wealth."
The behind-the-scenes life of the doctor is also looked at by Andrius Gruzdaitis, who shows a doctor and nurse playing chess with pills on a late shift to stay awake.
Other pictures take a look at the sometimes scary world of dentistry, such as the picture of a policeman having his teeth taken out while the dentist mutters "Do you remember fining me for speeding?"
Located in the Lithuanian Artists' Union Museum, the one-room exhibition is a good chance to see the lighter side of the medical profession and check the health of your funny bone. Doctors, nurses and even Paksas are all included. A booklet is available in English for the catchy one-liners that accompany some of the caricatures. o
Lithuanian Artists'
Union Museum
1/13 Pamenkalnio, Vilnius
Until May 2
