Riding the Wave
Wednesday October 20, 2010, 19h
Waterside Project Space
Unit 8, Waterside
44-48 Wharf Rd, London N1 7UX

A screening of video works by Grupa Azorro, Grzegorz Drozd, Piotr Filipiuk, Rahim Blak, Krzysztof Kaczmarek, Julia Zborowska.
Maxa Zoller and Karol Sienkiewicz in conversation

The screening examines the way Polish and Eastern European artists appropriate and paraphrase western themes and motifs. There appears to be a resurgence of post-modern art making strategies. In an art scene relatively young to the ideas of markets and high-powered institutions, a number of artists make use of some well-tried strategies that nonetheless appear ‘fresh’ in the local context.

This practice creates a field for self-reflection and analysis of the Eastern European relationship with Western culture. In contrast with Grupa Azorro’s humourous lament that ‘everything has been done’, a series of works that shun the institutional context and do not engage in post-modern discourse become apparent. These works move between the absurdity of the familiar and universal pop cultural trends, from banality to surrealism.

The choice between local and global reflects the rejection and participation in the mainstream ‘western’ art history. A constant desire forms part of a nation’s identity, but is this search for the self unique to Eastern Europe?

Programme curated by Piotr Sikora

- Grupa Azorro, Everything has been done, 2003, 12'26"
- Grzegorz Drozd, Challenger, 2007, 3'15"
- Piotr Filipiuk, Playground, 2009, 4'06"
- Rahim Blak, National Museum. How to become a part of the History of Painting?, 2006, 10'45"
- Krzysztof Kaczmarek, Cheerleaders, Scene with the guys, Casting
- Julia Zborowska, Trwala parowa (Hot Perm), 2009, 30'