Today I act in the double role of curator and artist. The selection for the show is very personal, based on the belief that to be a true artist means to be permanently exceeding one’s limitations, a never ending crossing of the borders and pushing the boundaries of whatever medium one chooses to work with.
Above image: Monika Patuszyńska. Photographs courtesy of the Triennial. Editor’s note: We ran some of Monika’s work Orphans and Bastards, a few years ago.
Not all of the artists present in the European Triennial for Ceramics and Glass came to ceramics or glass as their first medium, some graduated as sculptors (Grycko, Regel) or graphic artists (Warlikowska). The rest studied at the Wrocław Academy of Fine Arts, at the only Department of Glass and Ceramics in Poland. All of them were born and educated in Poland, however nearly half of them do not live there any more (Grycko, Klonowska, Regel, Szczęsna). They have chosen to use the very varied language of forms and themes; as vessels, figures, sculptural objects, installations or mixed media.
What do they all have in common, then?
Work by Aneta Regel. Click to see a larger image.
Work by Malgorzata Et Ber Warlikowska. Click to see a larger image.
Art by Adam Abel. Click to see a larger image.
They are explorers, constantly questioning the means of the materials they are using, exploring the role of the well known media of glass and ceramics, pushing beyond their limitations. Although, as you can easily see, they are very different. The common thread in their artistic practices is the courage to break the rules and seek their own ways. All of them are already mature, shaped makers who found their own ways expressing their concerns and passions through their techniques and forms.
Most of the artists are present on the contemporary scene, winning prizes in international competitions, showing in the European galleries and attending residencies all over the world. Apart from those who carry visibly different, weird Polish names, not everyone is even recognized as Polish. Once you are able to connect them with Poland, you might want to try some advanced tricks and learn how to pronounce their names.
Work by Monika Grycko
Installation view of Marta Klonowska. Click to see a larger image.
Installation view of Antonina Joszczuk. Click to see a larger image.
I would like to welcome you to that part of the world of which I am proud and which I consider my inner homeland, a place where the artists are not formatted to fit the market; despite the fact that the boundaries of such a personal homeland do not necessarily coincide with the country’s borders….
— Monika Patuszyńska
Text (edited) and images courtesy of the Triennial.
Do you love or loathe these works of contemporary ceramic art? Let us know in the comments.
Photograph by Karina Marusinska. Click to see a larger image.
Installation of Kamila Szczesna.
Click to see a larger image.
Click to see a larger image.
YES! A country and a Triennale able to celebrate their women artists without fringe representation!