Tradition and modernity in Bolesławiec ceramics – this is how the exhibition of contemporary designs by Zakłady Ceramiczne "Bolesławiec" can be summed up. Since 6 July, residents of Bolesławiec have been able to visit it in the building of the Museum of Ceramics on Mickiewicza Street.
It presents both products that are already known and recognised, and those creating a new quality; works that engage in a dialogue with the proud traditions of artistic and utilitarian ceramics from Bolesławiec. The exhibition therefore includes works by Janina Bany-Kozłowska and Magdalena Dwojak-Rogus, as well as pieces by Barbara Trojnar and Marta Małoszyc.
At the opening of the exhibition, Kazimierz Surmiak, President of Zakłady Ceramiczne "Bolesławiec", emphasised that all the designs gathered at the Museum of Ceramics are still being produced. Tadeusz Orawiec, the exhibition curator on behalf of the Museum of Ceramics, said that he hoped the exhibition would mark the beginning of further close cooperation. He added that the Museum wished to present not only tradition, but also the contemporary character of ceramic products from Bolesławiec.
The city authorities were represented at the opening by the new deputy mayor, Maciej Małkowski. The deputy mayor congratulated the female designers and wished them continued success.
"Choosing what is most valuable in terms of production, commerce and design alike is a difficult task," Marta Małoszyc, a designer at Zakłady Ceramiczne "Bolesławiec" and one of the exhibition's co-authors, told Boleslawiec.org. In her opinion, everyone could have created this exhibition in their own way. "We leave the assessment to the visitors," the designer adds. She first encountered Bolesławiec ceramics in childhood. Even then, she showed artistic abilities. "My mother could not keep up with buying modelling clay and plasticine," Marta Małoszyc laughs. She describes her work as follows: "an attempt to capture movement: whether it is a wave or a sailing ship. This motif has accompanied me since my student days." This accounts for the distinctive lack of symmetry in the designer's works. However, as she herself admits, much has already been said in ceramics – one must move forward.
The works of Marta Małoszyc and other female designers associated with the largest ceramic factories in Bolesławiec can be admired at the Museum of Ceramics until mid-August.
(GA report, photos by MZ)