Here Are 5 Rising Polish Artists You Should Know From Warsaw Gallery Weekend
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Loading... - Kayla Harrison
- 02 Nov 2022
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Dealers, collectors, and art enthusiasts gathered in Poland last weekend for Warsaw Gallery Weekend which kicked off on September 29, an annual celebration of contemporary art organized by the city’s galleries. For its 11th edition, 33 galleries participated with 38 exhibitions in their gallery spaces and at offsite venues beyond. At the infamous Palace of Culture and Science, Raster Gallery presented the work of Oskar Dawicki and Gunia Nowik presented the work of Nicolas Grospierre in the Pniewski Villa, a modernist architectural gem. At Kino Iluzjon, a 1950s cinema, Hos Gallery and Propaganda Gallery collaborated on an exhibition of sculptor Norbert Delman.
While the right-wing Law and Justice party continues to wreak havoc on the country’s esteemed contemporary art institutions—most recently ousting the longtime director of Muzeum Sztuki in Åódź following similar actions at Warsaw’s Zacheta Gallery and the Ujazdowski Castle Center for Contemporary Art in Warsaw—the capital’s private cultural sector is rapidly growing. Artists and curators are finding refuge in commercial galleries where they can present work without fear of censorship. Given this, it is unsurprising that many of the subjects that appeared throughout this year’s weekend were precisely those which the conservative government has been trying to quell, including women’s rights, LGBTQ+ issues, and how history is manipulated by those in power.
As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine escalates on the heels of Putin’s annexation of four Ukrainian provinces, it was hard not to notice the recurring references to central eastern Europe’s bloody and complicated past. Some galleries provided additional pamphlets translated into Ukrainian, acknowledging the millions of Ukrainian refugees who have settled in Poland since the start of the war earlier this year. In many ways, the gallery weekend felt like a safe haven from the current geopolitical reality of the region: a four-day celebration of the creativity and dialogue that can be generated in inclusive spaces. It also served as a reminder of all that may be lost if the right-wing government continues to chip away at Poland’s art and culture scene amid a chaotic political situation in Europe.
Below are five artists with stand-out exhibitions that resonated with the cultural moment.
Błażej Rusin
On view at Olszewski Gallery through October 28
BÅ‚ażej Rusin creates kaleidoscopic frescos on the walls of abandoned buildings throughout East-Central Europe. Influenced by his origins in the eastern Poland as well the history of the many displaced peoples of this historically multiethnic region, Rusin carefully removes his works—sometimes with bits of plaster—and displays them as mobile wall hangings. At Olszewski Gallery, Rusin’s works are presented alongside the work of 90-year-old artist Wojciech Sadley, an important figure in the Polish School of Textiles from the same region who also painted on easily transportable materials including cloth and parchment. Ranging from €5,000 to €6,000 ($5,000 to $6,000), Rusin’s monumental works, which he describes as “post-graffiti,” are exuberant celebrations of pattern, shape, and color that nod to the medley of cultural influences and diversity of the eastern borderland region of Poland. Read More…
