THE STATE'S TRIUMPHANT FRUIT

THE STATE’S TRIUMPHANT FRUIT

(the first part of civil responsibilities triptych)

The exhibition writes itself into the anniversary of the celebrations of the first free elections of June the 4th. Author initiates a discussion with history and its turn being a shifting of weight of the state’s development from an above-nationality democratic country relying on tolerance and cooperation with other countries in the European Union to a more and more internally focused and on its fears state basing itself on historical resentment, phobias and the glorification of military actions. Underlined here is the danger of the changing of the mental development system of preparing children to a blind patriotism and sacrifice of life for the homeland. Everything happens with the usage of catholic beliefs’ symbols also in spite of their original meaning and the current leading line of the head of the Church.

An inspiration for the exhibition is the pondering over the text of an anonymous Russian fairy tale from the Władimir Propp’s anthology: “How is the state’s triumphant fruit? They are orphaned children”. The ideology of sacrificing one’s life for the homeland so there and so here seems the most irrational mental construction leading to tragedy and the bereaving of not only families, but also the state. The exhibition’s author attempts to show the cruelty and near-sightedness of such approach in context of a possible to execute different conception of creating a community, especially in the modern times, where through democracy and the community of European countries such possibilities exist. A unique place to present such work is the Gdańsk’s Shipyard, the birthplace of opinions about equality and cooperation in the free Europe.

In the exhibition’s frame the author presents 3 groups of objects. In the entrance nave counterpointed is the peace flowing from the feeling of security – anonymous faces repeat like mantra the phrase “golden age is now”; on the other side is a gallery of heroes of polish mentality from Pilecki and Hubal to fictional like Wołodyjowski on coffin portraits painted with bloody colours brings wonderings on the topic of patriotic mental calque. In the central nave a harvester representing like a puzzle Poland united after the year 1918 tight on ropes in the shape of a cross executes monumental devastation of an alley of trees leading to infinity. In place of cut off branches appear lamps and votive standards – like in a church’s nave. Places of beauty are replaced by symbols of trauma and cruelty, pain and prayer. Process lasts frozen in a point in time only for a moment of thinking. From the monitor a Gdańsk’s choir sings a track in Chinese. That is the vision of the future in which young citizens of the city sing “happy birthday” to a new voivode of Pomorze – it is year 2026. Author asks: but how many times in history and now will make peace among us someone alien?

location: Old Forge, Imperial Shipyard in Gdańsk, Ks. J. Popiełuszki 2

time of the exposition: vernissage 01.06.2019, time of the exposition 01-09.06.2019

photos: Dominik Kulaszewicz