CURATORIAL PROGRAMME #3
THE EXHIBITION – PAWEŁ ŻUKOWSKI
06.08.2022—11.09.2022
Curator: Romuald Demidenko
“The Exhibition” is an installation by Paweł Żukowski on view at the Dzielna Foundation.
The proposal by the artist, who is based in Warsaw’s Muranów district, brings back the atmosphere of old shop windows and that moment when the displays would be changed. It is also a reminder that prior to being the home of the foundation, this used to be a shop for model-building hobbyists. To make his banners and collages, Żukowski most often uses cardboard and other locally-found materials. During these searches for resources, he often finds faded advertising posters, decades-old wrapping papers with logos of places that no longer exist, and various types of small objects as well as sometimes fabrics and furniture.
Żukowski's banners — “it will get more expensive” or “too late again” — remind ud of headlines or excerpts of overheard conversations. They attract attention not only because of the topicality of the message, but also the form itself, referencing various aesthetics including street art and protest. During the pandemic, the artist initiated a self-organised exhibition activity, thanks to which his hand-painted slogans on cardboard had a chance to be viewed in windows and on balconies throughout Warsaw (“We will manage”, 2020). Prior to this, Żukowski stood in front of a right-wing newspaper office holding a banner with the slogan “LGBT is me” — dozens of participants joined his protest every day, which in consequence opened a dialogue on the systemic discrimination of non-heteronormative communities in Poland.
Paweł Żukowski (born 1979) is one of the most interesting artists of his generation, making work from his observations of reality, relationships, sexuality, fetishes and social issues. Żukowski graduated from The Warsaw School of Economics and The University of The Arts in Poznań. His works have been presented across a range of centres of contemporary art and independent art spaces, including most recently QueerAnarchive in Split, Tom of Finland Foundation in Los Angeles, and Museo Reina Sofia in Madrid as part of the L'Internationale.
Collaboration: Aleksandra Szkoda
Acknowledgements: Ewa Góral, Elka Krajewska, Yulia Krivich, Monika Rakowska, Anna Tyślerowicz, Łucja Waśko, Katie Zazenski, Władysław Żukowski
