That same year, thanks to a grant from the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, Patanowska completed her first series of designed objects (Redesigns). The inspiration for these objects were a series of items on loan to the artist: items which people no longer needed but, for some reason or other, didn’t want to get rid of. Made with the support of the Lubiana Chinaware Company, Patanowska’s redefined objects went on to feature at the Make me! competition (2012) at the Łódź Design Festival, and Young Design competition (2012) organised by the Institute of Industrial Design in Warsaw. They also went on show at Unpolished, a series of exhibitions showcasing Polish design abroad.
Alicja Patanowska says she has a keen interest in porcelain factories and the knowledge and skills of those who devote their entire careers to uncovering the secrets of the production process: “Factory workers are a treasure trove of information. They are the greatest experts in their field, the silent masters.”
Understanding the material and the technology are key elements in the alchemy of ceramics. It is the combination of manual work at the potter’s wheel with the modern casting techniques used in factories (exemplified in her work entitled Tubo Motus). It is to use the fragments of history to give them new life (Plaster). It is innovative combination and the creation of new contexts, as seen in Wiping-Drawing, a collection of plates with a sprayed chalkboard covering on which users can leave their own unique mark. This collection, which aims to stimulate children’s imagination, gained distinction at the Młodzi na Start competition organised by 'ELLE Decoration' magazine. But the design is not only important in terms of its educational aspirations: its use of salvaged materials (i.e. plates considered waste in ceramic factories) is also notable, as is its invocation of the old tradition of hanging decorative plates on the wall.
This idea of tradition is also present in Old Wives’ Skirts, a collection of ceramic jelly moulds inspired by Poland’s colourful traditional costumes. Here the colourful stripes of folklore combine with the pure white of porcelain in the shape of a female figure in a traditional flared skirt. The process of ceramic pouring in the factory is later replicated in the kitchen using jelly.
Plantation project on the other hand sprung from the observations of the London night life. Walking through the streets of the city in early mornings, the designer would gather abandoned bottles and glasses. Then she added porcelain elements to them, which allow one to use them as planters. Thanks to the transparency of the glass one can observe how the plants grow and develop, both their roots and upper parts.
In Alicja Patanowska’s work we can observe the importance of interaction. The interaction with people, with objects. The exchange of ideas which takes place during the creation of an object, and how that object takes on a life of its own when it comes into contact with the user. The visual simplicity of Patanowska’s work, be it functional or decorative, conceals the many personal and cultural references contained therein.
Selected awards:
2014
- The Charlotte Frazer Award 2014, Royal College of Art, London
2013
- InnovationRCA, Entrepreneur’s Launchpad 2013, Royal College of Art, London
- One Year On/New Designers, Design Business Centre, London (shortlisted)
2012
- Make me! Łódz Design Festival 2012, Lodz
2011
- ART OF PACKAGING, 1st prize in the Free Style category– Debuts, Poznan
- Young Design’12, Institute of Industrial Design (shortlisted), Warsaw
- “Young at the Start” ELLE Decoration, honourable mention, Contemporary Art Center, Zamek Ujazdowski
- 57 Biennale of Faenza, Faenza, final selection
2010
- 1 st prize "Innovative artwork" Championship", Mondial Tornianti 2010, Argilla – Faenza
Selected exibitions:
2014
- GRADUATE EXHIBITION 2014, Royal College of Art, London
- INFORM, BLITZ Gallery, Malta Design Week, Valletta, Malta
- Work-In-Progress Show 2014, Royal College of Art, London
2013
- Art Food, Flow Gallery, London Design Festival 2013, London
- Polska! Folk, Sofia Design Week 2013, Sofia
- Women’ design, The Polish Museum in Rapperswil, Switzerland
- Women’ design, Cieszyn Castle
- New Talent, DMY International Design Festival Berlin
2012
- Use It!, International Ceramics Center, Boleslawiec
- UNPOLISHED 15 – Muzeum Nationale de Arta Contemporana, Bukarest, Romania
- Art Reviev SURVIVAL 10, Oławka Stadium, Wrocław, Poland
- UNOPLISHED 14 – Korea Fundation Cultural Center Gallery, Seoul, Korea
- UNPOLISHED 13 – Centre Meridional de I'Architecture et de la Ville, Toulouse (France)
- New tradition? Craft and Design, Cieszyn castle
- UNPOLISHED 12, World Design Capital Helsinki 2012, Design Museum, Helsinki
2011
- Polish Design, Contemporary At Center, Zamek Ujazdowski, Warsaw, Poland
- UNPOLISHED 11, Hong Kong
- 57° Biennal Premio Faenza, International Ceramics Museum Faenza
2010
- Incrementum, Helsinki,
- Ceramica storia di donne, Międzynarodowe Muzeum Ceramiki, Faenza
Weź sztukę, BWA Awangarda, Wrocław, Poland
Read more at: http://www.patanowska.pl/ (in Polish and English)
Author: Krystyna Łuczak-Surówka, September 2013, English translation: Garry Malloy, January 2014. Updated, July 2016, AM.
