- Place
- Rokiškis, Rokiškis District Municipality
- Region
- Aukštaitija
- Type
- open-air wood sculpture park
- Coordinates
- 55.95405, 25.58498
- Visit duration
- 30-60 minutes
- Best time
- late spring to autumn, when the sculptures and park are comfortable to explore
Rokiškis Lionginas Šepka Park, Lionginas Šepka Wood Sculpture Park
A park where sculpture is part of everyday space
Lionginas Šepka Park occupies a green space in a residential part of Rokiškis and works as a freely accessible gallery. The sculptures are dispersed across lawns, beside paths, and among trees rather than arranged in a dense exhibition. Walk a full circuit and view individual works from several angles.
Some pieces are functional. The museum's account mentions sculptural benches, birds, horses, sheep, and swing-like forms. Outdoor timber ages, however, and the condition of individual objects can change, so sit or climb only where it is clearly safe and permitted.
From the first symposium to the park's official name
The story began with a project prepared in 2000 by the art department of Rokiškis Regional Museum. It aimed to celebrate the originality of Lionginas Šepka while encouraging contemporary carving rooted in ethnic tradition. The first symposium ran from 3 to 9 September 2001, when five artists worked in oak on interpretations of Šepka's life and art.
Successive symposia added works by carvers from across Lithuania. On 27 July 2007 the municipal council formally gave the park Lionginas Šepka's name. In 2009 an assembly of ornamented staffs called A Bouquet for Rokiškis marked both the millennium of Lithuania's name and Rokiškis's 510th anniversary.
How many sculptures are in the park?
The museum's detailed creation history says that more than 60 sculptures stood in the park. Some later presentations give higher totals as the collection and outdoor environment evolved. It is therefore more accurate to understand the site as the cumulative result of several symposia than as a closed, unchanging inventory.
The participants did not copy Šepka's carvings. They interpreted his birds, soldiers, trees, religious imagery, and biographical themes in their own language. Šepka's originals are held by Rokiškis Regional Museum; the park shows later makers entering into dialogue with his legacy.
Why Lionginas Šepka matters
Lionginas Šepka lived from 1907 to 1985 and is regarded as one of Lithuania's most original twentieth-century folk sculptors. His pierced monuments, birds, ornamented staffs, and narrative compositions pushed beyond the conventions of rural craft. For the park's artists, they became a starting point for new forms that still speak the language of folk art.
Visit Rokiškis Manor on the same day to see works made by Šepka himself. The museum collection makes it easier to recognise which motifs later carvers quoted, transformed, or turned into functional pieces in the park.
Planning a visit
This is an open city park, so there is no separate ticket or museum-style opening schedule. Allow 30-60 minutes. Summer foliage provides shade, while autumn creates a strong contrast between dark carved wood and coloured leaves. Timber and grass can be slippery after rain.
Combine the park with Rokiškis Old Town, St Matthew's Church, and the manor museum. City streets and paths lead to the site, but temporary access, events, and conservation work around individual sculptures can change, so follow current signs on the ground.
