CREATIVE PROCESS
LIFE IS COLLAGE SO IS ART
Regardless of the art medium, collage is the basis of all my creative work. In collage I can take the world apart and reassemble it in an order ruled both by my intuition and intellectual mind. Sometimes the material itself - be it a piece of paper, fabric, found object or anything else - can unlock the deepest layers of memory and invoke feelings that culminate in the form of an artwork. My collages are my imaginary visual diaries in which I move freely from one place to another - from the Mediterranean coast through the shady courtyards of my native Krakow to the deserts of Mexico.
printmaking explorations
While working on archival pigment prints I explore the multiple expressive possibilities of shapes, textures and colors and search for personal metaphors and symbols. I immerse myself in a plentitude of techniques both traditional, like drawing, painting and embossing, and contemporary, like digital photography and imaging. I frequently work on series of conceptually related images and reinterpret the numerous variations of their compositions. While working and experimenting with different techniques and concepts, I discover new, exciting ideas that lead me to new ideas for future work.
shaped canvases & collagraphs
Years before I made my first archival pigment prints, I created collagraphs and shaped canvases - transitional artworks which are both sculptures that are perceptually freed from the power of gravitation, and paintings that are liberated from the rectangle of a frame. The prints I make now are closely related to those earlier artworks - they create the illusion of a three-dimensional space, use similar color palette, textural quality, and metaphorical language.
fine art textiles
My work in fiber is an attempt to bridge fiber art, painting and sculpture. Temples series is inspired by the stained glass windows of the historic cathedrals of Krakow. Unlike their conceptual sources, the fiber interpretations of these glass masterpieces are not designed for religious sanctuaries; they are created to bring spirituality to private spaces. Collages of Temples are made from the same textiles my art to wear is made from; their structures follow the compositional logic of my shaped canvases while respecting the soft nature of fiber.
art to wear
The darker and quieter shapes of hand-tailored garments distinctively frame the expressive collages of my unique clothing. In order to achieve the same creative freedom I have in painting or printmaking, I acquire a large variety of quality textiles in beautiful textures; I actually order many of them to be woven especially for me. I dye these fabrics myself in a wide palette of colors and tones for variety and colorfastness.
posters
Shaped canvases from early 1990s' were not only visual expressions of my feelings but also attempts of communicating messages to the viewers. It was a difficult task since I was addressing serious issues (related to war in Bosnia) and used an experimental art form a vessel of communication. Years later I have returned to communicating messages; this time I used another, more effective vessel - POSTER - and started to communicate my messages through poster design.
animations
While working on archival pigment prints I explore the multiple expressive possibilities of shapes, textures and colors and search for personal metaphors and symbols. I immerse myself in a plentitude of techniques both traditional, like drawing, painting and embossing, and contemporary, like digital photography and imaging. I frequently work on series of conceptually related images and reinterpret the numerous variations of their compositions. While working and experimenting with different techniques and concepts, I discover new ideas that lead me to new ideas for future work.
