Eldership artisans
Folk artist, ribbon weaver, braider
Jurgita Blaževičiūtė-Navickienė
Jurgita lives in Arminai village, Krokialaukis eldership district, and is an active member of the Santaika village community. The author became interested in old crafts 20 years ago. She weaves baskets and twisted bands using various techniques. She participates in events all over Lithuania. She is also one of the founders and members of the Ancient Balts and Crafts Club "Stebulė". Since 2010, she has been a member of the Dzūkija Branch of the Lithuanian Folk Artists' Union, and in 2020 she was elected as a member of the Branch Council.
Jurgita, together with her husband Giedrius Navickas, is one of the founders and members of the ancient Baltic warrior society "Jotvos sūnūs", which is dedicated to the promotion and reconstruction of the warfare, traditions, lifestyle and crafts of the Yotvingian people. "Jotvos sūnūs" actively participates in Lithuanian and foreign events and festivals of reconstructive history, unites like-minded people who have been at the forefront for more than twenty years in restoring and celebrating the memory of their Ancestors.
This year, the Jurgita and Giedrius Navickas family and the "Sons of Jotvos" Society organised the festival of restorative history "Kaukai". About half a hundred participants from Klaipėda, Kaunas, Vilnius, Pasvalys and other towns and districts gathered at the Kaukai Mound in Miroslavas municipality and presented Baltic crafts: goldsmithing, blacksmithing, leatherworking, boneworking, tar welding, amber working, glass bead making, knife-making, ceramics, straw gardens, ribbon weaving, woodworking, ringworking, and ancient brewing.
