KAUNAS ACCENTS – EVALDAS PAUZA / WITH LOVE II

During the interwar period, most of the products were exported to Germany. Especially geese and their livers that Lithuania sold around 600K to the Germans each year.

In 1933, when the Nazis came to power in Germany, tension grew over the Klaipėda region, where raging Nazis were restrained by the Lithuanian authorities. For this and various other reasons, Germany simply stopped import from Lithuania, furthermore, prevented the transit of geese to France and this was a severe blow to the Lithuanian countryside. There was an urgent need to come up with the ideas to whom to sell the surplus geese.

Eventually, in 1934 October 30 the government ordered all officials to purchase a 4-5 litas worth goose in accordance to their officials category. This meant that an official of category I was obliged to buy one goose, II – two geese and so on. Even more active poultry eaters were to become those who received a permanent additional salary, because they had to buy a goose for every 50 litas exceeding their ordinary salary.

Even the famous opera singer Kipras Petrauskas didn’t escape this obligation and was forced to buy a flock of geese. Engulfed with anger he shepherded the birds across Laisvės avenue.

Sections on goose topics and recipes appeared in the newspapers of that time and various jokes were spread in the society, including that it would only be possible to visit family and friends as long as no roast goose would be served.

Evaldas Pauza’s sculpture “With love 2” is inspired by these events.

Darbų kolekcija

Evaldas Pauza "With love II"
Evaldas Pauza "With love II"
Evaldas Pauza "With love II" / Kaunas city municipality photo