“Creativity is my life.“
Rūta Lečaitė is a young artist, first and foremost – a costume designer, who is currently working in the field of cinema and theater, but does not limit her creative interests there.
“From drawing, photography, painting, pottery, sewing costumes to art cinema, design, interior design, theater set design, art education and art therapy.” – that is how Rūta describes her creative activities. She says she decided to be an artist when she received a box of watercolors „Leningrad“ on her 4th birthday.
Later on, Rūta‘s creative potential was being nourished at Klaipėda Eduardo Balsio Art gymnasium, where watercolor paintings were replaced by serious art studies. She continued her education after high school at Vilnius Academy of Arts, where Rūta acquired the specialty of a set designer. The artist also expanded her knowledge of finishing her Master’s degree in the field of art education. In addition to designing costumes and adapting them for film and theater, Rūta turns her thoughts and sketches into real art.
Rūta has spent the last fifhteen years on film sets, but what we see on cinema screens requires a lot more work and creative potential than we can imagine. Spectators only see the final product – a costume, but the way it is designed, customized and adapted to the period, scene, genre, finally – to the character itsself, is all Rūta’s work. As the artist explains: „The clothes (costumes) need to be sewn, altered, aged, adapted and prepared before the actors put them on and step in front of the cameras.“
Like any work of art, a costume is first born out of imagination, then sketches and only after that it materializes: „At the very beginning, while only imagination and preparation are still at work, all of the work is done with a computer on a desk or on the ground drawing sketches, doing layouts and making drawings, models and clippings. Afterwards, fabric shops, clothing boutiques and the like are visited. Measurements with the actors and the director are the last strokes. And finally comes work on set.“
Besides the development and implementation of costume ideas, Rūta has a vision to engage in educational activities, namely to reveal the magical costume creation process to interested viewers. Even experienced film lovers, who have a vast understanding of the art of directing and are capable of critically analyzing the acting of actors, the storyline, recognized that the art of film remains hidden under a veil of secrecy. Costumes are not magically found in antique stores or at the market, as many people might think – it is a separate form of art that requires knowledge of fashion history, imagination and, of course, skill.
