'Katachi' means 'shape'

I was doing my everyday press review and in one of the websites with news I noticed a short note about an unusual video. It amazed me with the amount of work and precision that had to be put in this project.

The song is titled 'katachi' which means 'shape'. And the video is made from 2000 shapes cut out from PVC plates. The idea and all the work was made by Polish artists. Congratulations!

Happy Birthday Palm!

The Palm from De Gaulle's roundabout is 10 years old! Many people wonder why there is a canary island date palm in one of the Warsaw's most popular spots. The palm is part of a project 'Greetings from Jerusalem Avenue' by Joanna Rajkowska. The author of the project had planned to put a lane of palms along the street called Aleje Jerozolimskie (Jerusalem Avenue) but at the end they decided to put just one palm at the junction of Jerusalem Avenue and Nowy Świat street, on some kind of a traffic island.

The tree is 15 m tall, it's waterproof and made mainly of plastic. There was a long discussion going on during preparations to make the idea of the palm come true. There were many doubts about who's gonna take care of the palm, who will pay for it, how long should it stand on the roundabout, about copyright lawsand of course about its political and cultural context.

Origins of the project date back to the artist’s journey to Israel (in Tel-Awiw there is a street called Jerusalem Avenue too) and her attempt to realise and the others aware of the significance of Jerusalem Avenue to Warsaw, the street’s history and the vacuum caused by the absence of Jewish community. It was supposed to be also a social experiment, testing whether the Polish society is ready to absorb such a culturally alien item. The spot at which the palm has been placed before the year 2002 had been used for a Christmas tree :)

The palm still sparks extreme feelings. It has divided Warsovians into those treating it as a symbol of a city and a society welcoming the others, developing, focused on the change, and those that support order, tradition and a city closed for strangers. The palm brings about many divisions and fuels conflicts deeply hidden in Polish society. It contains a lot of humour and irony as well, which saves it from definitions that could subdue it to any ideology. However, despite many different statements about the palm, it has become a symbol of Warsaw and one of the most characteristic points of the city.

More about the Palm you'll find on the official website: http://www.palma.art.pl/

View in Poniatowski's Bridge direction

Think pink!

Maurycy Gomulicki is a Polish modern artist, making happy and optimistic, but also a bit controversial art.
What is characteristic for his output, is that almost everything he makes, he makes it in pink. It's not only his favourite colour, but it also has its meaning. Pink is a way to demonstrate the ideology of the artist, a kind of manifesto of what he believes in. Pink is for Maurycy a symbol of joy, happiness, gladfulness. It's not a praise for mindless hedonism, but it is meant to be an inspiration for people to get from life what is most important for them. To take what's the best and to treat life as a present to unpack.

Why is it so interesting? Because in Poland many people don't treat life this way, we still have some kind of inferiority complex of developed countries from West. We have a frustrating history, many of us still remember it (ex. the sad and grey days of communism) It sometimes seems that we are a little depressed by it. And so dedicated to our everyday lives; frustrated by all the unhappiness we have to struggle with; problems we have to solve that we lose our optimism and good energy somewhere. Gomulicki tries to inspire, to change people's point of view. Life is simple, you just have to notice that and don't pay attention to bad things that depress you. That you have to think of yourself, be good for yourself, pleasure yourself and make yourself feel happy. That's the true meaning of life and this is what everybody has to learn: be happy even if it's difficult.

And he makes his art with this message. He takes pictures, he makes sculptures, he paints, he makes neons. his works connote simple happiness, all the small things that can bring us joy and remind us that the only thing that is important is our pleasure :)

Take a look at his works in different places of Poland:

fot. Mikołaj Długosz

This neon is called "Światłotrysk" or "A big glass of pink orangeade". It is located in Kępa Potocka park in Warsaw (see it on a map).

Taken from the artist's website

Women's breasts are also a thing that bring joy :) Two swimming breasts you can find by the pier in Sopot, famous Polish seaside town where many people travel to have a good party :) (see it on a map).

 This is a photo taken by the artist to show that even everything's grey there is still beauty to be discovered.

More about Maurycy Gomulicki you can find in his Flickr Gallery and personal blog.




   

Something about Łódź

It is often said that Łódź is an uglier sister of Warsaw. I can agree that they are related somehow, but I'd never say that Łódź is the ugly one. Even if it's only 135 km (84 mi) away from Warsaw, it is far different from the capital of Poland - and this is what makes her worth sightseeing.

Łodź has left her brightest times in the past - it used to be one of the biggest manufacture centres in Poland. Giant factories were everywhere, not much of them have survived. Łódź was focused on the textile industry, it was even called a 'Polish Manchester'. By the time right before the World War I Łódź had become one of the most densely populated industrial cities in the world! The textile industry declined dramatically in 1990 and 1991. However, countless small companies still provide a significant output of textiles and old factories are being turned into galleries, cinemas, theatres and culture centres. The alternative culture is growing there very quickly - you can observe it on the streets, on the walls of buildings, in cafes and pubs... everywhere.
During the World War II, Łódź was captured by Germans. Soon the Nazi authorities set up the Łódź Ghetto in the city and populated it with more than 200,000 Jews from the Łódź area (approximately 900 people survived the liquidation of the ghetto in August 1944).

These days, history is still alive in Łódź. There are many beautiful old buildings, especially tenement houses still waiting to be renovated. They seem to be ruined, but they still have something eye-catching. So, what Łódź has to offer? 
Piotrkowska street:  is the main artery and attraction stretching north to south for a little over 5 km, making it (one of) the longest commercial streets in the world. A few of the building fronts have been renovated and date back to the 19th century.
Łagiewniki: you can get close to nature in this largest city park in Europe. Actually, you can say that it is an urban forest! You can ride a bike there, rent a paddleboat, sightsee old chapels and enjoy the nature.
The 'Poznański' Palace: is known as a Louvre in Łódź and it became a City of Łódź History Museum with many events taking place there.
Manufaktura: it used to be a giant factory, right now it is a multicultural centre of spending free time in shops, restaurants, clubs, cinema and museum.
M2: it is a museum of Polish contemporary art. It has got a wide collection of Polish most important avantgarde artists. There are plenty of museums and galleries in Łódź!
Film School: Łódź is also a national film centre. It has got the most famous film school in Poland. Scenes of David Lynch's 2006 film 'Inland Empire' were shot in Łódź :)

Check out a great map of Łódź here: http://www.use-it-lodz.pl/

And finally, how to get there? Very simple! There are plenty of trains going from Warsaw Central Station. All journey by train takes only 2 hours. Check the timetible here: http://test2012.rozklad-pkp.pl/bin/query.exe/en?

All the details are important in Łódź

'Wolności' Square (the Square of Freedom)

Buildings of Łódź

Giant mural next to the Piotrkowska street

The details of Manufaktura

Cafe 'Wolność' ('Freedom' cafe)

NeSpoon - a little bit different street-art.

Poland has its own unique street art and NeSpoon is an artist who certainly deserves attention. Why? Because of the pretty little things she makes. She is decorating Warsaw with so called “jewellery of the public space”. You can find them on walls, pavements, dustbins or even trees and baroque sculptures. NeSpoon prefers to call her work “outdoor art”, not “street art”. That’s because most of it is not strictly on the streets, but also in parks etc. Also the technique is pretty unusual. It’s ceramics. NeSpoon's typical and favourite pattern is Polish traditional lace imprinted in clay. 

The purpose of NeSpoon's work is to make public places look better, more interesting, prettier. She says that she would like to save the world and make it a better place. But she perceives it is impossible to do it all by herself. So she is doing her best by adding her bit of positive energy into Warsaws streets and other spaces. She would like to bring a smile to people’s faces every time they discover one of her small applications.

NeSpoon is also the first artists I know who makes so called “children street art”. Ceramics made by her in shapes of colourful ladybirds and lovely dragons have a specific purpose. They are made to teach kids how to find something charming in walls and in the nooks, and that sometimes small things are also very important things.

The art of NeSpoon proves that you don’t need anything big and well exposed to make the city look happy and interesting. Searching for tiny details can bring you great fun and satisfaction. So, while having a walk around Warsaw (but not only!), keep your eyes wide open and maybe you will find pieces of urban jewellery! 

NeSpoon in Łódź - in cafe Owoce i Warzywa (Fruits and Vegetables)

PS. Visit NeSpoon's blog. And here is a little tip where to find some of NeSpoon's works in Warsaw.

Read more about Polish street art:
Adidas defeated 
Chopin from the block