Design
Design policy in Lithuania is shaped and implemented by two Ministries: the Ministry of Economy and Innovation and the Ministry of Culture. The Ministry of Culture supervises various cultural initiatives of the design sector and copyright. The Ministry of Economy and Innovation is responsible for design export and the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises.
The financial support for the design sector is provided by several institutions. The Council for Culture provides funding for various projects of design and other design-related initiatives, such as publications, events, education, and festivals, and supports individual designers with grants. The Council also administers the project “Design wings” that aims to bring together “talent, knowledge and expertise to create competitive design solutions based on the principles of digital, innovation and circular economy, small and medium-sized enterprises of design”. A total of EUR 3 176 470 has been allocated to fund the project for 2024–2028.
The Ministry of Economy and Innovation funds design through its Agency for Innovation. This is a national innovation agency that provides free services for clients from the business, science and public sectors, interested in possibilities to develop strong cooperation relations with international partners and get financial support for research and innovation projects. It funds certain design work (especially eco-design and exhibition stand design). There is also a financial institution ILTE, which works like a national development bank and provides loans and guarantees to businesses, including to design studios or for project costs related to design.
Despite various financing sources and two Ministries that are concerned with design, the Lithuanian policy of design is not systematic and has been quite neglected for a long time. Until 2015, Lithuania had no design policy strategy, although there were some “bottom-up” initiatives aimed at preparing such a strategy. For example, in 2008, Vilnius Academy of Art commissioned the study The Complex Development of Lithuanian Design, which was conducted by the international design research team Mollerup Designlab. The study provided the development plan of the Lithuanian design sector for seven years, which was presented to the Ministry of Education. However, the plan was not adopted.
In 2014, the Design Innovation Centre of Vilnius Academy of Art conducted a feasibility study of the development of the Lithuanian design sector. One of the recommendations of the study was a proposal to establish a national Design Council, whose long-term activities would include the maintenance of communication between public authorities, business companies, design agencies, and educational institutions, as well as consultation about the design policy.
In 2015, on the basis of the above-mentioned study, the Lithuanian Ministry of Culture adopted the Guidelines for the Development of Architecture and Design. The document established five development guidelines: 1) to strengthen informal education in architecture and design, and to increase literacy of the general public and professionals in architecture and design; 2) to develop the science and knowledge transfer by promoting innovation in architecture and design; 3) to strengthen cooperation between different sectors of society; 4) to increase the visibility of design in society and to raise the awareness of the influence of design on the social and economic development of the country and its impact on innovation; 5) to increase the visibility of architecture in society and to raise the awareness of the influence of architecture on the sustainable urban development, quality of life, environmental protection and the economy.
In 2019, the Lithuanian Design Forum Association carried out a feasibility study about the establishment of the coordinating institution of the Lithuanian design sector. The study identified the main issues that hinder the development of an efficient ecosystem of design: under-representation of the sector at various levels; ill-matched functions of design institutions; miscommunication between different design sectors; and lack of cooperation and coordination of activities. Also, as it is stated in the study, Lithuania did not have a consistent Law on Design that would be appropriate for contemporary design understanding and improvement of the design sector’s performance. Although, Lithuanian Parliament had adopted the Law on Design in 2002, the Law dealt only with industrial design of products and lacked the definition of design in up-to-date terms consistent with contemporary models of design activities. The study proposed to establish a single central institution responsible for coordinating the design sector – the Lithuanian Design Office.
In 2019, the first step towards the consistent design policy was taken – the Ministry of Economy and Innovation of the Republic of Lithuania and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania established a joint unit – the Design Council. The task of the Council is to contribute to the development of a long-term continuous design policy by submitting to the Minister of Culture and the Minister of Economy and Innovation proposals and recommendations on the issues concerning the strategic planning of design sector, programmes and measures of design development, priorities, and sources of public funding for design, protection of design heritage, strengthening of international competitiveness of Lithuanian design industry, etc.
Architecture
In 2001, Lithuania became a member of the Architects’ Council of Europe (ACE) and began the process of organising its activities in compliance with European legislation on architecture and building policy. The activity of architects is regulated by the Law on Construction (1996), Law on Architects’ Chamber (2006) and the Law on Architecture (2017).
The policy of architecture is shaped and implemented in Lithuania by the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Environment. The Ministry of Environment develops spatial planning, urban planning, architecture, and construction policy, organises, coordinates, and controls its implementation, as well as makes recommendations to municipalities in the field of architecture in the territories of municipalities. The Ministry of Culture protects and develops the immovable architectural, urban and ethno-cultural heritage. The most important political document prepared by the Ministry of Culture for architecture is the Guidelines for the Development of Architecture and Design (see above).
The Lithuanian Council for Culture funds projects of architecture under its special programme. The Council provides funding for the following activities: 1) professional creation and its dissemination in Lithuania and abroad; 2) events; 3) accumulation of information (archiving, documentation) and its dissemination; 4) publishing; 5) professional criticism and analysis; 6) networking and mobility; 7) co-production; 8) mastery development and education. In 2020–2024, the Council allocated 1 016 091 EUR for 88 projects of architecture and awarded 106 individual grants for architects.
The Architects’ Chamber was founded in 2006. The objective of the Chamber’s activities is to ensure the transparency and quality of architectural activities, to oversee architect certification, recognition of qualifications, professional qualification development and compliance with professional ethics standards, to carry out monitoring of professional activities, to represent architects in dealings with state and self-governance institutions and other legal and natural persons at both the national and international level, to act as an expert in courts and other institutions on issues concerning the professional activities of architects, to satisfy and defend public interest related to architecture, and to resolve other related issues. In 2025, the Architects’ Chamber had 1 253 members and 12 439 architectural works registered in the Chamber’s database.
The Architects Association of Lithuania (AAL) (founded in 1924) is a voluntary NGO that unites the licensed architects of Lithuania. In 2025, AAL had 644 members, 538 of which have the status of artists. The organisation has 5 sections in 5 different cities.
On 22 November 2019, the Lithuanian Architects’ Chamber, AAL, the Architectural Fund and the International Kaunas Architecture Festival published a public letter appealing to the President, Prime Minister and other leading figures to establish the Lithuanian Centre of Architecture, which is a necessary institution to implement the Lithuanian national policy of architecture. The centre would document, collect, preserve, research and disseminate architectural works to the public and foreign visitors. In 2021, the Ministry of Culture carried out a feasibility study on the possibility of adapting the building of Kaunas Central Post Office to the needs of society. The building, designed by the famous Lithuanian architect Felix Vizbar (1880 – 1966), is one of the most prominent buildings of Kaunas’ modernist architecture of the interwar period. As of 2019, the building is no longer in use, as the Lithuanian Post has moved to another premises. The authors of the feasibility study recommended establishing an Architectural Centre in the building that could present Lithuanian architecture and design. In 2022, the Ministry of Culture acquired the building and established the National Institute of Architecture, which will be housed in the building following its renovation in 2027.
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