非池中線上藝廊

關於

I'm a Polish artist living in Cracow. My main fields of study at University were graphics and drawing (diploma 1997 linocut). However, I understood very quickly that to express myself I need colour with its deepness and saturation. I started to draw some colourful illustrations for newspapers and magazines still on the basis of black and white sketches. The first serious colour experience came to me when I worked as a stained glass designer and painter. The colour going through the glass changed my mind and feelings. I realized that to show my message I must use colour in a more stable and consistent way rather than depend on the daylight. I also realized that painting was the best form for this expression – painting which depends on the use of colour. That’s why the use of colour is characteristic of my painting: colour formed me artistically, it increased my sensitivity and changed my thinking about composition. What also characterizes my works is the interest in people I’ve always had, in their inner lives, doubts, emotional fluctuations and moods, which I try to depict.

When I look at the surroundings and situations that are happening around me, I feel as if I were watching a kind of spectacle of human behaviour. The atmosphere and context of certain events are so expressive that they seem to be exaggerated. If we were to capture one of such scenes, we would get a bizarre picture in which human gestures and postures seem markedly different from those encountered in everyday life. We would also capture emotions at the moment of their release when they are the strongest and most genuine. Even without looking at the surroundings, one can come up with a similar situation and endow it with an air of reality. Intensify the feelings to the point of the absurd. Effect a mental and physical metamorphosis of an individual tossed between ecstasy and longing. But the images I create are real – they are based on nostalgic memories of times past. They still have the same power of expression, but they gain a timeless, universal value.

Solitude is a state which tends to appear more and more often in my works. Sometimes it is caused by situations or emotions; on other occasions, it is a conscious choice. It gives us time for reflection and for distancing ourselves from reality. It has a lot in common with intimacy. The experience of solitude makes us authentic. To be solitary, however, does not mean to be alone. On the contrary, it means to become connected with nature, to experience it more fully and deeply and in consequence to establish rapport with the whole universe. The characters depicted in my paintings are always placed in the surroundings which enhance solitude, but at the same time offer a safe haven, a place cut off from the outside world. It does not have to be a confined space, though. A piece of architecture or a landscape can also be seen as a separate, alien reality, as “the other.” Being an integral part of reality, man gradually internalizes some of its features. He is no longer a separate entity, but becomes a representative of the place in which he finds himself. The scope of the change may range from a minor adjustment to a complete physical transformation, which results in a new artistic solution. This process generates positive or negative emotions expressive of man’s inner life.

For me, painting means showing a man and his story. The form and colour play a decisive role here. The former is nothing more than a few simple brush strokes, which bring out what is most important. The dominance of colour, its brightness and balancing on the edge of reality are also caused by images that stay alive in my memory. The feeling of heat, the scent of the air, the sound of the street are impressions based on colour. Therefore, my characters are shown in the context of these impressions. It is only then that they gain an authentic meaning. Painting is also a way of dealing with my own thoughts and confronting the surrounding reality. It is an intimate conversation with my viewer in which we both speak wordlessly about things that are important – our needs and feelings.

From 2009 I’m connected with Taiwan. Starting from International Art Competition “Art Wind Rises” in LA (Golden Award) organized by Taiwanese X-Power Gallery I was taking a part in Art Revolution Taipei (2013,2014,2015) and finally displayed my 4 solo exhibitions (Taipei, Hsinchu) first in Soo Gallery and then in CHAcademe. My emotional connections with Taiwan are very strong. Life and people there influence on me a lot and my thinking has changed. Viewers in Poland say I’m Taiwanese in my art and people in Taiwan say they can feel some Polish in my paintings. I think I’m in the middle, a part of me is still Polish but every year more and more inside of me is Taiwanese. These two places allow me to compare reality from different points of view. It helps my art to be universal.