Our future concerns everyone. Will we protect our cultural and natural heritage, or will we live on the Moon or Mars? Will we destroy everything? And will everything change? What will happen to us and to the world we know? Participants from four Bolesławiec art studios—two at the Youth Cultural Centre and two at the Bolesławiec Cultural Centre – International Ceramics Centre—worked on the theme: yesterday, today and tomorrow in Lower Silesia.
The result was an interesting and highly diverse exhibition, both thematically and in terms of the techniques used: batik, photography, ceramics, drawing, painting, collages, reliefs, sculptures and graphic art. The variety of forms and themes clearly distinguishes this exhibition, whose opening took place on 16 July at the BOK – MCC gallery.
“It began with an exhibition at the museum in the castle in Krobnitz, called Upper Lusatia in 2060: who we were, who we are, who we will be,” Anja Köhler from the Schlesisch-Oberlausitzer Museumsverbund said at the opening. “Based on this project, we wanted to ask the residents of Upper Lusatia where they would be in 2060. Although in 2019 none of us suspected that the following year we would be living in science-fiction times and that everyone would be wearing masks. The idea for such a project appealed greatly to BOK – MCC in Bolesławiec, and they wanted to continue it—to transpose it to a local setting. To ask how the residents of this region would see themselves in 2060. The result is different from ours, because here the main material is clay, but the guiding idea of both projects is the same. We know which direction we want to take and how to find our place in the future. I am very happy that we were able to bring this project to completion, because last year it was not possible due to the pandemic. I hope there will continue to be ideas and people willing to carry on with this project,” added Anja Köhler.
The works on display at BOK – MCC were created in four studios: two visual-arts studios led by Katarzyna Sas and Joanna Mysłek-Michnowska, a ceramics studio led by Marta Małoszyc, and a photography studio led by Grzegorz Sidorowicz.
“The project participants working under my supervision were children,” said Joanna Mysłek-Michnowska. “And the youngest ones at that. The children created visual-art works using any techniques that can be used on paper. They produced beautiful works, and I congratulate and thank you all very much for your work,” added the teacher, proud of her students.
Marta Małoszyc also thanked her students.
“This was the first time I had led this type of workshop,” said the artist. “At the exhibition, you will see various ways of working with clay: there are vessels, bas-reliefs, sculptures and a small study of the human figure. We also presented various ways of decorating the works,” added Marta Małoszyc, inviting visitors to see the exhibition.
Katarzyna Sas spoke with equal pride about the works of mature female artists who have participated in art projects for years and have many valuable things to convey through them.
“We are sentimental,” said Katarzyna Sas. “We focused on places that are being forgotten, that are disappearing and falling into decay. Some are still functioning, while others are not. For two months we made batiks featuring architecture above all: staircases, tenement houses and castles. In addition, since the project’s theme also included the future, we decided to create several works using old ruins, to which we added modern elements,” Katarzyna Sas explained while presenting the works.
Grzegorz Sidorowicz and the participants in his workshops presented photographs.
“We chose photographs only loosely connected with the theme,” said the photographer. “It is very difficult to show now, yesterday and tomorrow in photography. I did not want to use Photoshop and artificially impose some kind of futurism. The photographs present the theme quite symbolically: Grodziec Castle with a knight, or a contemporary sofa in an old palace, as in Agnieszka Karczmarz’s work. Jarek Cembrowicz’s photograph is an ideal combination of yesterday and today: a view from his window onto Karola Miarki Street (the roundabout by the special-needs school, editor’s note). This is an interesting story—the combination of a view from 1967 with a contemporary view. Jarek took the first photograph as a child. His father was a photographer; he had a few frames left and allowed his son to take the last pictures. That was when the photograph from the window was created. And when I later suggested that Jarek participate in this project, he remembered the photograph and matched it with today’s view. Separately, these photographs are banal. But together, they are brilliant,” added Grzegorz Sidorowicz.
The exhibition can be viewed at the BOK – MCC gallery at the Forum cinema on J. Piłsudskiego Square until 25 July 2021, and from 6 August to 26 September at the castle in Krobnitz, am Friedenstal 5.
Project participants
Grzegorz Sidorowicz’s photography studio
- Andrzej Pękała
- Iwona Champlewska
- Urszula Popielarz
- Magda Gałkiewicz
- Martyna Sidorowicz
- Jarosław Cembrowicz
- Piotr Koza
- Krzysztof Jędrzejczyk
- Agnieszka Karczmarz
Katarzyna Sas’s studio
- Ewa Wojciechowska
- Danuta Bednarska
- Danuta Popielińska
- Barbara Macuga
- Grażyna Łach
- Anna Skruńdź
- Beata Jaśkiewicz
- Maria Kościołek
- Łucja Mielczarek
- Natasza Jaskot
Marta Małoszyc’s ceramic and sculpture workshops
- Hanna Ochyra
- Renata Wójcik
- Marcin Sacher
- Czesław Matyjewicz
- Mariusz Potyszka
- Magda Konieczna
- Marika Konieczna
- Borys Konieczny
- Justyna Konieczna
- Agnieszka Dębska
Joanna Mysłek-Michnowska’s visual-arts workshops
- Jolanta Koźmin
- Henryk Lemka
- Teresa Jaśkowska
- Nina Bender
- Zbigniew Gaweł
- Hania Szylkiewicz
- Hania Glinkowska
- Martyna Kus
- Amelka Fila
- Milan Junak
- Jowita Junak
- Konstancja Kumoś
“The project Lower Silesia – yesterday – today – tomorrow. Cross-border art workshops” is co-financed by the European Union under the European Regional Development Fund and by state budget funds through the Neisse Euroregion.
