Orvydas Garden (Orvydų Sodyba)

Hidden in the Samogitian countryside near the village of Gargždėlė, the Orvydas Garden is one of Lithuania's most remarkable and least-known art environments. Created by folk artist and stone-carver Vilius Orvydas and his family, this sprawling garden contains hundreds of stone carvings, wooden crosses, monuments, and found-object assemblages spread across several hectares. Vilius Orvydas began creating the garden in the 1960s as an act of spiritual resistance against Soviet atheism. He rescued crosses and religious monuments that Soviet authorities had ordered destroyed, incorporating them into an ever-growing landscape of art and devotion. Over decades, the garden grew into a labyrinthine collection of carved boulders, towering crosses, and mysterious stone faces peering from the undergrowth. The garden has a deeply spiritual atmosphere that transcends any single religion. Walking through it feels like entering a sacred forest where every stone has been touched by human creativity and devotion. Though Vilius passed away in 1992, the garden is maintained by his descendants and remains a powerful testament to one man's creative resistance against oppression.