The Points of View Video Festival presents the latest video art by students and graduates from art academies in Poland as well as academies in Łódź’s partner cities – Vilnius and Berlin. The Birmingham screenings will present a selection of films from the festival from the years 2011-2013 and a selection from Vilnius and Berlin.
Artur Żmijewski is one of the main representatives of critical art in Poland. Born in Warsaw in 1966, he studied Sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts in Poland’s capital.
He completed his diploma under the supervision of Professor Grzegorz Kowalski. The dominant feature of Kowalski’s didactic approach was freedom of means of expression. One of the media used by the students in the 90s was video art. Photography and film became Żmijewski’s focal point of interest. His works touch upon taboo areas, revolve around unnerving issues and reveal the presence of the Other in society. Żmijewski’s films could often be described as “directed documents”, however, his productions sometimes come near to the traditional notion of the documentary genre.
Other artists presented in Birmingham are: Małgorzata Goliszewska, Tomasz Koszewik, Magdalena Lazar, Justyna Misiuk, Maria Ornaf, Katarzyna Pacura, Piotr Światoniowski, Mikolaj Tkacz, Hubert Wińczyk, Agata Witkowska and Paweł Żukowski.
The event is organised by PEA – an art organization supporting the integration of Poles in the United Kingdom. PEA offers support to immigrants from Central and East Europe who settled in the West Midlands. The organization was set up in 2009 and its main aim is the improvement of living standards for the Polish community, including through promoting Polish arts and culture. PEA’s curatorial agenda includes exhibitions, film screenings, artist talks and concerts.
The video art showcase is organised with support from Active Culture Association and Polish Cultural Association in London.
Source: press materials, Culture.pl materials, polishexpats.org.uk
Edited by km
Translated by Kasia Dolato 24/07/2014