Birutė Rūta Vitkauskienė

Birutė Rūta Vitkauskienė is a Lecturer at the Vilnius Academy of Arts since 1993, specializing in Art History and Theory. She leads the Vilnius Research Group at the National Museum of Lithuania and has contributed extensively to the study of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Vilnius urban history, and goldsmithing traditions.

• PhD in Humanities (2005, Warsaw Institute of Art)
• Graduate of Vilnius State Institute of Art (now Vilnius Academy of Arts)

Her research spans Baroque architecture of Western Europe, biographical studies, and cultural heritage documentation, with notable projects including the international Documentation of Jewish Litvak Architecture in Belarus (2009–2017) and co-editorship of the Castles of Lithuania journal (2007–2010). She received the Vilnius Municipal Government First Prize (2021) for the 700th anniversary celebration concept.

Key publications include monographs on Vilnius City Plans (2016) and Vilnius Royal Watermill Hydrology (2010), alongside editing archival collections and co-authoring prosopographic dictionaries. Her work intersects architectural archaeology, artistic craftsmanship, and historical narrative construction.