Agnieszka Polska. AURORITE

In her works the artist uses mainly photos, animation, videos and collages. She is interested in the nature of the memory mechanism which due to its imperfection is close to the process of creation. Agnieszka Polska’s animations are based on the idea of bringing archival materials, such as old photos, to life. She uses pre-war newspapers, books, black and white photos from the 1960s, 1970s, including the documentation of works of art, as her source materials. Borrowed aesthetics decides about the atmosphere of her works, as if rooted in utopian, slightly idealised visions of the future. The artist shows how misconceptions resulting from reading of what has been archived and thus deprived of its original context can lead to a certain new quality. Polska’s strategy resembles the work of an archivist with a critical attitude – she is less interested in what was actually archived, paying more attention to the things that have not been stored. Because of it her works balance on the borderline between reality and fiction, while the viewer remains in the state of uncertainty with respect to the status of the materials presented: which part of it is an artistic creation and which constitutes a historical document.

Agnieszka Polska’s exhibition entitled "Aurorite" revolves around the artist’s most recent film "Włosy / Hair" the premiere of which will take place in the Centre for Contemporary Art Ujazdowski Castle. The film further explores Agnieszka Polska’s field of interest. On the example of the phenomenon of the Polish hippie movement the artist asks a question about the character of the revolutionary idea which in the different social and political context underwent transformation and got distorted with respect to its original. What is the meaning of the evolution process for the idea and what is the catalyst of changes?

The exhibition will also include some of the artist’s earlier works, among others films, e.g. "How the Work Is Done" (2011), "Stahlwille" (2008), and photo-collages.

Agnieszka Polska (born in 1985) is one of the most interesting Polish artists of the young generation. In 2011 she won the main prize in the Eugeniusz Geppert painting competition in Wrocław. This year her films have been presented at Tate Modern in London. Polska was also one of the 20 artists nominated for the 2012 Future Generation Prize for young artists, founded by the Ukrainian collector Victor Pinchuk, founder of the centre for contemporary art in Kiev – Pinchuk Art Centre.

Agnieszka Polska
AURORITE
Kuratorin: Ewa Gorzadek