Arts
fromArtforum
2 weeks agoHow Vision Becomes Ideology: On Wadysaw Strzeminski's Theory of Seeing
Władysław Strzemiński's 'Teoria widzenia' examines the interplay of vision, art, and socio-political conditions from prehistory to modernity.
The opening pages introduce us to a world straight out of gothic fable. In an isolated manor house by a forbiddingly dark forest, a strange-looking baby is born. This unearthly child, Lajos, is fated to carry forward the family name of the Lazars, a noble dynasty with an alarming tendency to go mad, die violently, or both.
A well-known academic with Russia's Hermitage Museum, Butyagin had worked on archaeological digs in the Myrmekion site, located in Crimea, both before and after Russia annexed the peninsula in 2014. The work helped discover ancient artefacts, including Alexander the Great-era coins.
PORT's building in Dobrzeń Mały reflects the re-emergence of viticulture in through a compact architectural structure designed to support wine production and storage. Positioned within rows of cultivated vines, the building is conceived as a restrained and functional volume informed by local agricultural typologies of the Opole region while addressing contemporary production requirements. The architecture consolidates multiple functions, including storage, warehousing, and small-scale wine production, within a single structure.
Diverse zones allow employees to shift from heads-down work to group sessions with ease. An area for guests, which contains a plant-filled bookshelf, is reminiscent of a living room. The social sector at the heart of the workplace includes a casual dining section and bar. Glass blocks let sunlight filter in and complement the tile backsplash. There's even a room dedicated to deep relaxation, complete with cosmic motifs and a recliner.
The organicity of the human body we're born inside of is encoded in us. This concept of our organic nature as the source of elemental knowledge, at once direct and mysterious, permeates the textural abstractions exhibited in her survey Magdalena Abakanowicz: The Thread of Existence at Musée Bourdelle.
Behind its seemingly polished framework, To Empty Out emerges as an exhibition beautifully rife with contradictions that overlay serious and playful themes according to Grzybacz, who often sets out to "clash the forces" of gravity and levity through his chosen subjects. Through sublime florals, bawdy scenes, and raw portraits of social life, Grzybacz balances contemplation and observation, navigating between painterly precision and intuitive expression in this deeply personal exhibition.