VISUAL ARTS
Actual Art Zone: Aleksandra Ska - UNPRODUCTIVE
OPENING: SEPTEMBER 9 (FRI.), 6 P.M. / FREE ENTRANCE
Paradoxically, the issue that the exhibition ‚Unproductive‘ by Aleksandra Ska relates to, or revolves around, is a specific work of hate. Even its very nature is paradoxical: as a result of the work of hate, no quality is created, no product, no good. As the title of the exhibition indicates, the act of this passion is completely unproductive. Hatred does not create anything and still it bears fruit. Her work causes far-reaching effects and has the widest possible impact.
This paradox is a starting point for the exhibition. In three video works entitled "Ska, I hate you", exuberant fruits of hatred are presented. The scene is simple: the most ripe fruits and the most fresh vegetables have been sculpted into the most fantastic decorations, that adorn a table, as if creating another example of iconography of abundance. Half-naked women are resting on the table, like Hesperides lying amongst fruits grown in their garden. However, instead of treating us with their sweet singing (as mythology dictates), they are sipping venom, which poisons the fruits of work done.
This paradox is a starting point for the exhibition. In three video works entitled "Ska, I hate you", exuberant fruits of hatred are presented. The scene is simple: the most ripe fruits and the most fresh vegetables have been sculpted into the most fantastic decorations, that adorn a table, as if creating another example of iconography of abundance. Half-naked women are resting on the table, like Hesperides lying amongst fruits grown in their garden. However, instead of treating us with their sweet singing (as mythology dictates), they are sipping venom, which poisons the fruits of work done.
The fruits of Hesperides of hatred are supposed to lure with the sight of them and to poison with their contents. Perhaps then, the women are fairhaired harpies contaminating food with their words. Every of them pronounces the title phrase. So the contaminated feast is awaiting the artist.
Furthermore, we can claim that the results of its cunsumption will be disclosed in the final scene of the second movie presented at the exhibition, entitled – ‚Unproductive‘. In this scene, the artist drinks the entire venom that has sneaked into her life, the whole poison busily prepared by her loved and unloved ones. The earlier scenes of the movie, showing the artist reaming front teeth with dental equipment, suggest however, that maybe the only hatred is self-hatred.
Even if Aleksandra Ska is the one that is supposed to consume the alluring and tasty, although poisoned fruits, she is also the one who has prepared them. It is the effect of her work that we can admire in skilfully sculptured decorations, in excellently made movies and finally in ingeniously arranged exhibition. Here, the second moment of the paradox of unproductive work of hatred, which this exhibition investigates, is revealed. Ska has created a scene, in which hatred can be uncovered. If hatred however, is the work of negation, if its only action is poisoning, and the result being a deadly contamination or morbid eruptions, then of course it couldn’t be the source of artistic creation. The creation becomes more of a tool for working through self-hatred, which seems to be one of the elements of forming the identity of every subject.
The background for the movies, which are key elements of the exhibition, is a photo wallpaper with nosediving swallows. Maybe the reason for this self-destructing behaviour of the birds is the fact, that they have no eyes. The eyes of each of the swallows have been scratched out. In this way, the obligation to repeat, which according to Freud is a symptom of the death instinct, has been included in the artistic process. The artist reveals her individual intimate constitution, the element of which is what she herself perceives as unproductivity, and what is a denial of the values traditionally symbolized by swallows (fertility, vitality, the rebirth of life after winter, etc.). In a symbolic way, they fall victim to her hatred for what they symbolize or rather for her self-hatred in relation to that meaning.
This individual disclosure is only an excuse for revealing a much more surprising intimate constitution of the artistic subject. Therefore determining the functioning of an art field. Perhaps an even deeper paradox is uncovered this way, that creation identified with affirmation can be related in an indirect way to the death instinct. After all, each art activity is somewhat unproductive. - J. Lubiak // translation: Marta Kaźmierczak
curator: Kamil Kuskowski, cooperation: Jarosław Lubiak
Project financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of Poland.
Actual Art Zone / Zona Sztuki Aktualnej
Tymienieckiego 3, Łódź
www.zona-art.pl
OPENING HOURS
Sat. after opening (Sept. 9): 12 a.m.-4 p.m.
Mon., Tue, Wed., Fri.: 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
Thu.: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
Sat.-Sun.: closed
Furthermore, we can claim that the results of its cunsumption will be disclosed in the final scene of the second movie presented at the exhibition, entitled – ‚Unproductive‘. In this scene, the artist drinks the entire venom that has sneaked into her life, the whole poison busily prepared by her loved and unloved ones. The earlier scenes of the movie, showing the artist reaming front teeth with dental equipment, suggest however, that maybe the only hatred is self-hatred.
Even if Aleksandra Ska is the one that is supposed to consume the alluring and tasty, although poisoned fruits, she is also the one who has prepared them. It is the effect of her work that we can admire in skilfully sculptured decorations, in excellently made movies and finally in ingeniously arranged exhibition. Here, the second moment of the paradox of unproductive work of hatred, which this exhibition investigates, is revealed. Ska has created a scene, in which hatred can be uncovered. If hatred however, is the work of negation, if its only action is poisoning, and the result being a deadly contamination or morbid eruptions, then of course it couldn’t be the source of artistic creation. The creation becomes more of a tool for working through self-hatred, which seems to be one of the elements of forming the identity of every subject.
The background for the movies, which are key elements of the exhibition, is a photo wallpaper with nosediving swallows. Maybe the reason for this self-destructing behaviour of the birds is the fact, that they have no eyes. The eyes of each of the swallows have been scratched out. In this way, the obligation to repeat, which according to Freud is a symptom of the death instinct, has been included in the artistic process. The artist reveals her individual intimate constitution, the element of which is what she herself perceives as unproductivity, and what is a denial of the values traditionally symbolized by swallows (fertility, vitality, the rebirth of life after winter, etc.). In a symbolic way, they fall victim to her hatred for what they symbolize or rather for her self-hatred in relation to that meaning.
This individual disclosure is only an excuse for revealing a much more surprising intimate constitution of the artistic subject. Therefore determining the functioning of an art field. Perhaps an even deeper paradox is uncovered this way, that creation identified with affirmation can be related in an indirect way to the death instinct. After all, each art activity is somewhat unproductive. - J. Lubiak // translation: Marta Kaźmierczak
curator: Kamil Kuskowski, cooperation: Jarosław Lubiak
Project financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of Poland.
Actual Art Zone / Zona Sztuki Aktualnej
Tymienieckiego 3, Łódź
www.zona-art.pl
OPENING HOURS
Sat. after opening (Sept. 9): 12 a.m.-4 p.m.
Mon., Tue, Wed., Fri.: 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
Thu.: 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
Sat.-Sun.: closed
Art Factory
Tymienieckiego 3
90-365 Lodz, Poland
phone/fax: 48 42 646 88 65
info@fabrykasztuki.org
::: more information
Tymienieckiego 3
90-365 Lodz, Poland
phone/fax: 48 42 646 88 65
info@fabrykasztuki.org
::: more information
