Emperor's Masks

The project “The Emperor’s Masks” explores the figure of the contemporary leader as one who wears two masks. It is inspired by the Venetian carnival and its theatrical tradition of masks, each possessing its own face and symbolic meaning. The project emerged as a response to the growing crisis of leadership—both globally and within Lithuania—as well as from personal experience. The project seeks to reveal how modern “leadership” or “imperial authority” is often constructed externally: through displays of authority, surface-level charisma, and manipulation in the pursuit of power. Beneath this façade, however, lie inner demons—lost identity, emotional fragility, feelings of inferiority, and unresolved complexes. In this work, the Emperor is portrayed as a gambler who, operating through both masks—the external and the internal—attempts to increase his personal and professional gains. The people surrounding the Emperor are depicted as lesser figures: taught, controlled, or occasionally protected, all in order to demonstrate power and bestowed grace.