In context of Eyes On 2012 – Month of Photography Vienna
Opening: Monday, 12 November at 7 p.m.
Introduction: Jakub Swircz and Krzysztof Candrowicz
We deeply regret that we have to announce the cancelation of the film evening THEN AND NOW presented by film school LODZ on Saturday, 24 November 2012, 5 p.m.
The collective of the FOTOGALERIE WIEN sincerly thanks the Polish Cultural Institute Vienna for the support.
“The Polish photography scene is booming,” the two curators Krzysztof Candrowicz and Jakub Swircz, whom we asked to contribute brief statements, agree. And we certainly concur, after an opportunity to explore the vibrant Polish arts scene during a study trip last year. “It’s a gold rush,” we marveled. That’s when the idea was born to invite our freshly established contacts—galleries, institutions, curators—to present Polish artists working in photography and new media in Vienna during the Month of Photography. We asked them to each name one artist who, in their view, occupies an important position in the contemporary Polish arts scene. Our exhibition “Recommended by …” presents the fruits of this inspiring collaboration:
Galeria Czarna, Aga Czarneka, Warschau:Dorota Buczkowska/Przemek Dzienis, JoannaPawlik
Galeria Refleksy, Katarzyna Żebrowska, Warschau:Mateusz Torbus
Galeria Leto, Marta Kolakowska, Warschau: Maurycy Gomulicki
Jakub Swircz, Kurator, Warschau: Michał Jelski
Lodz Art Center, Krzysztof Candrowicz, Lodz: Anna Orlikowska, Przemysław Pokrycki
Zacheta Narodowa Galeria Sztuki, Joanna Kinowska, Warschau: Rafał Milach
Marek Grygiel, Kurator, Warschau: Krzysztof Pijarski
Polish photography is still working to recover its history and its language. Much has been forgotten; a great deal of material was destroyed or lost. Current art photography in Poland is a blank slate; we are now free to place works of art in their proper contexts and have open debates about them. (Jakub Swircz)
The past two decades in Poland have been a period of dramatic change: the economic and political transformation has affected many aspects of everyday life—yet fundamental cultural attitudes and what we call “the spirit,” “the soul,” have remained untouched. Unlike Polish cinema and graphic design, the country’s photography used to draw very little international attention. Today, by contrast, Polish photography artists show their work in prominent museums and galleries, and there are major photography festivals such as Cracow’s Photomonth and the Fotofestiwal in Łódz ́. Some of the most talented and up-and-coming Polish photography artists are presented in the exhibition “Recommended by …” at Fotogalerie Wien, Vienna. (Krzysztof Candrowicz)
Petra Noll for the collective