Improving the quality of life and providing mental and physical comfort for society are among the paramount objectives of Bartosz Mucha's conceptual practice. Many of the quasi-architectural objects designed by the artists are sort of shelters, where the modern city dweller can hide from the madding crowd, relax, take a nap, gather his thoughts and escape from the daily grind.
The designer twiddles with the notion of home, which can be both a trap or a retreat, either providing freedom or restricting liberties. The cover of the collection of photographs refers to the issue quite distinctly- it presents a picture of a man trapped inside a hamster wheel house By setting it in motion, he illuminates an optimistic/ironic neon sign that beams Welcome Home. Home and family gives one a sense of security, Mucha appears to be saying, but they can also enslave their occupants.
Bartosz Mucha is a visionary designer, for whom the existential and social message of his projects is more important than the possibility of their actual implementation in the real world.
The exhibition "52 Lazy Weeks" features the effects of an annual art regime: 52 amazing objects from the borderland of art, design and architecture. The term "paraarchitecture" refers to a long term project aimed at creating design concepts, three-dimensional visualizations, scale models, prototypes and ideas, which agitate the issue of a "home" from different perspectives. Some of the Mucha's works critically, almost mockingly, refer to the home-work ritual, while others are created with a certain sense of commiseration for people in misfortunate situations such as the homeless or victims of natural disasters.
Mucha works with commonly available and low-cost materials that comply with the general tenets of his "Poor Design" philosophy. Many of his pieces are humorous variations of existing buildings or constructions. The artist likes to push the viewer of the ordinary way of thinking about functions of a given object. Utilitarian functions often intermingle with playfulness and the aesthetics of form - providing a sort of practical entertainment for adults.
Bartosz Mucha (born 1978) - graphic artist, designer, creator of the Poor Design brand. In 2004 he graduated from graphics at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. His work has been presented at a number of individual exhibitions at such venues as the BB Gallery in Kraków and Wrocław (2005) and at the FAIT Gallery in Kraków (2006). He participated in many group exhibitions: Vienna Design Week (Vienna, 2008), Designblok (Prague 2009), Real-World Laboratory in MQ (Vienna, 2009), PolishDesign (Shanghai, 2010). He teaches graphic design at the Faculty of Arts of the Pedagogical University in Kraków. Having completed the five-year project Poor Design, he recently launched a new one, Pararch (for ‘paraarchitecture'), in which he explores the issue of alternative architecture.
For more information on the work of Bartosz Mucha, see: poor.pl
Curator: Magda Kardasz.
The exhibition runs between May 14 - June 26, 2011.
Kordegarda Project
ul. Gałczyńskiego 3
00-362 Warsaw
link*www.zacheta.art.pl*http://www.zacheta.art.pl/page/view/54/wystawy-projekt-kordegarda****Source: press release