Press Release

Cezary Poniatowski (b. 1987, Warsaw, Poland) focuses on themes of nature, darkness, abundance, and viciousness. These themes are symptomatic of growing up during the so-called zombie socialism period, marked by a hybrid of ritualistic anti-communist incantations and a sudden, merciless neoliberal reality. As the artist puts it: “With a bit of sardonic humor, my works reflect an attempt to recover from the dark times of helplessness and anxiety. Still, these feelings of unease, passed on by previous generations, reoccur in our times of hyper-populism and technocracy.” His works have been exhibited at the Zachęta National Gallery of Art in Warsaw, Derouillon in Paris, Ginny on Frederick in London, Centre for Contemporary Art FUTURA in Prague, WAF in Vienna, and Air Service in Basel.

Poniatowski’s styrofoam pieces can be interpreted as speculative archaeological objects from the near future — artifacts that might be discovered “within a wall.” They are metaphorical imprints, remnants, synthetic traces — fragments of what once took place “at home” during the Anthropocene. Their geometric divisions and rhythms may evoke the mosaic aesthetics popular in the 1960s, while the reliefs appear as faded symbols of contemporary life. Visually, Poniatowski’s works resemble unfamiliar ritual objects. Totemic and hieroglyphic, they suggest a sense of paganism — yet perhaps they are, in fact, embodiments of our own era, glimpsed from a distance we ourselves cannot attain.

newartdealers.org