From Saturday, in Zachęta, you can participate in the exhibition “I see everything as art”. We tested it on our own children and we only warn you about one thing: from this gallery your little ones will not want to leave!
After the success of the 2016 exhibition “Here or there”, devoted to contemporary Polish illustration for children, Zachęta once again opens its galleries for the youngest, this time offering creative play in relation to selected works by Polish contemporary artists (including Edward Krasiński, Roman Opałka, Ryszard Winiarski, Katarzyna Przezwańska). The authors of the exhibition ask questions about the reception of contemporary art by the youngest – can it be interesting and inspiring for them? Can you have fun with art and art?
The exhibition is divided into two areas: a typical museum cubicle with works by artists (which the kids admire while standing on the platforms – bravo for the idea!) and the artistic training ground surrounding it, where children can play, create their own works and experiment with art . You know – little ones like to touch, smell, look closely. They have a hard time sitting in one place and can be noisy. In Zachęta, it was decided to allow them to do so. Children can tape up walls with blue tape, paint faces, look at themselves in a “negative” mirror, create collages, have a “potato” pillow battle, scratch strings of numbers and embroider colored wire patterns.
This exhibition is not viewed, it is participated in, but rather it is created. Every day, the exhibition halls will look different, depending on the fantasy and temperament of the young artists visiting it and their reaction to the presented works. There are no detailed descriptions, ready-made interpretations or translations here – what counts is emotions and independent thinking free from patterns. The title of the exhibition is the words of one of the artists presented here, Julita Wójcik: “I see everything as art: weeding gardens, peeling potatoes, crocheting … Art does not have to be serious. I do funny things, sometimes very ironic. By means of simple activities placed in a space that does not match them, I try to draw attention to everyday life… ”
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The opening of the exhibition was very popular and crowds of children of all ages raged in the Zachęta building. Starszaki created precise and thoughtful installations. Slightly younger – more or less aware that they are in contact with higher art – they devoted themselves to spontaneous and joyful acts of creation. The kids treated the exhibition as a playground – they squeezed through the “mouse mink”, played hide and seek in the maze, threw huge dice. The room filled with potato-shaped pillows turned out to be an absolute hit – a reference to the famous performance by Julita Wójcik. It was loud, joyful and creative. “I have never seen such madness here,” commented the mustachioed security guard with a smile. Only infants seem to have slept peacefully in prams.
This is what the exhibition “I see everything as art” is like – inspiring, engaging, liberating creativity. Zachęta once again rose to the occasion, proving that it is a place accessible not only in terms of infrastructure or architecture (I wrote about it HERE). What is equally important is openness to various cognitive needs of recipients, including the youngest. Looking at the crowds of happy kids, I realized that at least some of the exhibition halls of most art galleries should look like this. Or maybe it’s time for a real children’s museum to be established in Warsaw?
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The exhibition will last until June 3, 2018. It will be accompanied by curatorial tours, family workshops and lessons for kindergartens and schools. A publication by Ewa Solorz entitled “Everything I see as art” (Wytwórnia publishing house) was also published.
curator: Ewa Solarz
cooperation on the part of Zachęta: Katarzyna Kołodziej-Podsiadło
visual identity: Robert Czajka
arrangement: Kosmos Project, i.e. Ewa Bochen-Jelska and Maciek Jelski
artists: Edward Krasiński, Roman Opałka, Ryszard Winiarski, Maurycy Gomulicki, Julita Wójcik, Aneta Grzeszykowska, Monika Drożyńska, Jan Dziaczkowski, Katarzyna Przezwańska
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The Parent in the City Foundation visits, checks and promotes places friendly to families with young children as part of the zmaluchy.pl project. They include Warsaw museums, such as the Center for Contemporary Art (see HERE), the National Museum (see HERE), the Zachęta National Gallery of Art (see HERE), the POLIN Museum (see HERE), Łazienki Królewskie (see HERE) and the Muzeum Station (see HERE).
We are pleased to support and patronize the #muzealniaki campaign, and we encourage parents to actively participate in it!
You can read more about the action HERE.
Joanna Barczuk