Zofia Kulik. Instead of Sculpture. Footnotes

Is expert knowledge necessary to understand contemporary art? The exhibition “Zofia Kulik. Instead of Sculpture. Footnotes” invites you to look at art from the perspective of your own experience, with openness and curiosity. The starting point is the work of one of the most important figures of Polish neo-avant-garde, and its complement, “Footnotes”, the outcome of meetings of the Open Working Group, which for several months examined Zofia Kulik's work while creating a space for discovering it together.

The central point of the exhibition is one of Zofia Kulik's most important works, created in 1971 as her diploma at the Sculpture Faculty of the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts. In her realization, the artist gave up the chisel and classical sculptural materials in favor of photography. Using a camera, she created a sequence of images produced through actions performed on the bodies of models and various objects.

Kulik studied at a time when the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts was co-shaped by Oskar Hansen, architect, pedagogue and author of the concept of Open Form. His theory assumed that a work should not be a closed, finished object, but an open structure receptive to change, dialogue and the participation of the viewer. These ideas were also an important point of reference for her diploma, which she titled “Instead of Sculpture”.

The exhibition at the Museum of Photography is the first museum presentation of this work in Poland. Its most important part is a slide show, one of three parts of the 1971 realization. The projection, lasting about thirty minutes, allows you to enter the artist's world and observe a developing creative process in which forms and colors appear and disappear, interacting with one another.

The display does not end, however, with the presentation of the historical work. Its second, equally important part is “Footnotes”, a project prepared by the Open Working Group. For several months, people representing different generations and experiences jointly examined how “Instead of Sculpture” can be read today and how to talk about contemporary art so that it is accessible to viewers. The result of this work is texts, notes, sketches, workshop materials and documentation of successive stages of shared exploration. “Footnotes” do not point to one correct interpretation. Rather, they show that even art that seems difficult to understand can be tamed step by step, through experiencing it, conversation and asking questions.

The idea of Open Form also finds practical development in the way the exhibition itself is built. Visitors can join in collective weaving on a prepared loom. The fabric, made from recycled materials, will change throughout the exhibition, leaving traces of the presence of successive people.

The whole is complemented by a cycle of weekly meetings devoted to selected topics related to Zofia Kulik's work, the theory of Open Form and the contemporary reception of art. The meetings will create a space for conversation, exchange of experiences and joint discovery of the exhibition.

The exhibition is accessible during the Museum's opening hours. The last entry to the exhibition is one hour before closing.

Admission to the exhibition “Zofia Kulik. Instead of Sculpture. Footnotes” is possible with: • single ticket: 5 zł • combined ticket: for the main exhibition or a ticket for all exhibitions • pass: 15 zł, unlimited admission to the exhibition for its entire duration and participation in accompanying events.

Curator: Monika Kozień Curatorial collaboration: Open Working Group (Aleksandra Adamowicz, Agnieszka Berezowska, Kasia Borysewicz, Annemarie Frascoli, Marta Gelu, Monika Kozień, Karolina Majchrowicz, Barbara Maroń, Tuyết Pham, Izabela Raś, Elżbieta Sobiecka, Anna Szczepańska-Krasoń, Paulina Świca; people occasionally supporting the process: Małgorzata Flanek, Monika Góralewska, Joanna Hakluk, Elżbieta Kozień, Justyna Michalik-Tomala, Jakub Wójcik and Mysza).

Coordination and production: Weronika Poskrobko Installation design: Bartek Buczek Typography design: Sławomir Bobola, Magdalena…