Tablo | Agata Pankiewicz

Artist

Agata Pankiewicz

ABOUT EXHIBITION

The title of “the Tablo” exhibition refers to slightly anachronistic school boards with photographs of students and graduates. In this case, however, the artist used this idea to realize it in a completely different aesthetics, more associated with the ubiquitous culture of the television screen than the well-known tablo in the retro style. Photographs of students in grades IV a and IV b is a record of media existence, children who agreed to be photographed, reported their accession to fame, the desire to show up in previously inaccessible areas of art.

In turn, a series of images of children confronted with images of old dolls, Barbie dolls or masks from the popular simp’s computer game consists of a cycle “slander”. Children’s faces and images of dolls, icons of their time, heavily processed, play a game with each other, in some way they will become unified, becoming only a form of a long look. The artist talks about images:

“I STRIKE TO SIMPLIFIED THE FORM OF FULL RELIABILITY WHAT YOU CAN ENJOY A PLASTIC EFFECT.
I WILL NEVER MAKE THE MOST IMPOSSIBLE VALUE THAT SHOULD BE SHAPED.
IT WILL TAKE ME TO TRY THE ABILITY OF REALITY AND FICTION, REPLACING THE BEING OF LIVE IN AESTHETIC “ITEMS”, ITEMS – IN PEOPLE.
I AM LOOKING FOR SUCH SOLUTIONS WHERE THE FORM OF THE CREATION IS TAKING UP ABOVE
CERTIFICATE OF REALITY. ”

Jerzy Lewczyński
excerpts from the catalog to the exhibition at Galeria Pusta in Katowice – opening January 2005

“(…) Photography describing the landscape of human fate from the nineteenth century enriched our knowledge of what comes of this fate. One should recall the full strength and tear of searching in the art of photography in the 1930s. It was then that the aesthetic, social and political rebellion in Polish Photography was born against the background of Jan Bułhak’s distinguished Home Photography. Artistic phenomena that went beyond common conventions often took place! The gates of convention and creative courage, often outraged by public opinion, cried.

Today, we are amazed but also concerned about the photography of Agata Pankiewicz, using the broadly coming twenty-first century. It is difficult to determine how much of the old “noise, storm and pressure” has been left in this play, but we feel that what we see corresponds to the possibilities of a man who understands the coming epoch!

(…) “TABLO IVa” and “TABLO IVb” – devoted to the daughter – are a common registration of living people, which we meet today in countless artistic and photographic forms from family, school or thematic albums.
I have to think about how this diversity and the ease of reflection on the impulse influences – even in the hope of finding a friend, partner or maybe not an enemy! These faces are millions, billions of creatures enclosed in the digital code and devoid of the old archaeological photographic memory.

I do not condemn the methods of photographing with a digital camera, and even find some satisfaction of the anonymity of these human incubations! However, you always have to hope to find this “second half of the paradise apple”.

The series “po-TWARZ” (…) is a poignant series devoted to the metamorphosis of a small man – a girl – a doll. A sterile pale background confirms the child’s innocence and the secret of his fate hidden in it! I have to praise myself that once and I have paid attention to the fate of a man-woman who opens and closes her eyes.

Here – this backward little girl is the secret of what will be; when your hair is torn, kissed and, unfortunately, dyed!
(…) I want to draw attention to phenomena in contemporary art – photography, which are burdened with “paper and electronic shackles” (my invention). It takes us perhaps the roots of our innate emotions resulting from human physiology and psychology. The day of barbarism in art is precisely the reason for these limitations. I recall my beloved Gombrowicz with his saying, “How does it delight you when it does not impress me.” How do I understand it when I do not understand!

It arouses emotions and forces you to look for answers to what Agata Pankiewicz’s art of photography is! ”