BETWEEN A METASTASIS AND A HORSE TAIL
A lot of people tries to inquire into what actually art is. Me too – when I was making documentary projects “The Memory Bank” and “Artists about art” together with Żuk Piwkowski – many times I asked “normal people” and artists about this. A lot of people also put it, for example Maria Parczewska the laboratory of creative education of CSW (Centre for Contemporary Art). From enquired answers it seems that art could be defined in a hundreds, often variance, ways.
Because of this I’ve liked a last issue of “Exit” [2 (70) 2007]. Among mentioned endlessness of entity which assemble a picture and an idea of art the magazine manages to achieve coherence. An editorial concern of Jacek Werbanowski for subject and for a irreproachable hand of artistic manager Maciej Kałkus can be seen; those are interesting projects – which move, enrich and attract attention; those are artists which I respect. Mikołajczyk, Robakowski and Rytka struggle bravely with the form – in another common exposition “An Energy Of A Message”. There is Elżbieta Jabłońska and her „home” everyday happenings, a metaphysical installation “Septuaginta” of Julian Raczko or Michał Brzeziński who is a theoretician of a video and a recycler of images. It’s good.
It would be very good if not one of texts published in “Exit” which made me to think over what I’d recklessly taken that letters and words arrange in such a strange semantic series in front of my eyes.
Indeed, unnecessarily I’ve started reading from this particular text, well, it’s happened: it’s fallen on unequalled master of a historic-fake esoteric. It’s Kazimierz Piotrowski (“Metástasis”), to whom a fact that he became an anecdotal figure seems not to disturb. I’ll cite a fragment: “So it is not a type of anagogé (rising up a platonic dialectic) neither a phenomenological eidetic but a typical for structuralism method of formulating of invariants what is a result of casual-consecutive relations which however are not capable of breaking morphologic rules (co-existential)”. This is what a critic has to say about Julian Henryk Raczko’s art taking an opportunity of a moving exposition which was realised by the fighting with disease artist who in his 70 birthday decided to sum up his spiritual, very sincere search, outstretched between two poles: a catholic tradition and an agnostic structuralism.
So if someone also unfortunately starts reading from Piotrowski he will probably never buy “Exit” again. But I soothe: to tell the truth, such things also occur in texts of other authors (for what a system of an art education, where it’s rare taught to look and often order to become absorbed in Ingarden’s reasoning should be blamed), but this language is a dominating one in this quarterly. Perhaps it not behooves to say to the outstanding superintendent to write… rather for people and don’t make dis-service to an art promotion, which without his efforts in Poland seems to be for a phenomenon available only for some and at least balancing on a border of a decency.
If I had to show one text from the other pole, written in easy manner and absorbing, it would be a review by Jerzy Truszkowski about an exposition “A woman about a woman” presented in the Bielska Galery BWA (Natalia LL dominuje, Konopka rządzi / Natalia LL dominates, Konopka rules). I like to know from the first sight that an author has some views (even if I don’t share any of them) and that the art appeals also to his emotions and not only to his cognitive apparatus.
“Woman artists often create their images to show themselves in a way they want themselves to be” – from advancing of this thesis Truszkowski starts his text, he does it in connection with a work of Natalia LL, photos, on which she is shown as a domina in latex shoes an a necklace hanging under her chin.
As a person with skeptical view about the art classified only in a “feministic” category I’ve read this article with a lot of joy. Truszkowski has a socio-ecological verve, which isn’t very common in Poland, especially in reasoning concerning art – and grounds some ideas of woman artists exhibiting in Bielska BWA. „Marta Deskur – writes – shoves Muslim scarves, but only scarves are important, whereas women wearing them don’t count. The artist isn’t interested in their problems not at all”. She also asks: “Does Ewa Kaja, in her works concerning hair as an accessory to women, pick out that braids used by her are made from horses’ tails? Not long ago those were fragments of live animals. People kill them thoughtlessly and without any need, so many gentle animals that we don’t need to eat”. Here a public uproar can be raised, that – an artist has a right to zero in only scarves or only tails, seeing in them even only an esthetic valour, and not necessarily she has to save the world taking an opportunity. The point is that if our art arranges any social discourse she should do it more responsible and have it in a vast perspective. I have an impression – a bit put on by Truszkowski (and thanking him for the reflection) – that an inundation of average works which tough topics seemingly important may cause that in future people will unwillingly reach for less garish art showing matters concerning all of us, deeply and truly.
Through an open window comes to my room a mix of hits, which some crazy neighbour turns on very loud at least once a week. “Rudy rydz”, arias from “Carmen”, Seweryn Krajewski, „Kolorowe jarmarki” – can be Heard every where, most often in a time of putting children to sleep. I don’t oppose them but I’m afraid that I’ll hear them even if I’ll put on in my house for example Erica Satie.
Does the last paragraph has something in common with the modern art? Rather yes.
Klara Kopcińska
Translated by Agnieszka Żbikowska
Discussed journals: Exit