An interview with Tomasz Opania on his newest installation ‘All Quiet on the Eastern Front’. | Contemporary Lynx - print and online magazine on art & visual culture

We met with Tomasz Opania to talk about his maneuverable artwork ‘All Quiet on the Eastern Front’ which focuses on the ruthless invasion of the Russian Federation in Ukraine. The talk focuses on human duty, cross-domain collaboration, the role of artists in times of war, objectivity and the meaning behind the exhibitions at Mieszkanie Gepperta and Szewska galleries in Wrocław. The world goes on, but the war continues. ‘All Quiet on the Eastern Front’ is a gripping installation that encourages the viewers to observe, think, and confront thoughts on the current political situation on the Eastern front.

Monika Juskowiak: Thank you so much for taking the time to answer our questions. The exhibition “All Quiet on the Eastern Front” is your latest installation. Can you briefly tell me about the concept, and how it interacts with the viewer?

Tomasz Opania: The exhibition ‘All Quiet on the Eastern Front’’ touches upon the current situation in Ukraine and the ruthless invasion of the Russian Federation. Russia’s attempt to seize the territory of Ukraine is an act of malicious, unprecedented aggression. It is an unjustified, senseless war to move borders. Putin intends to detach another part of Ukraine that for him is strategically and economically important territory. The frontier post, which I used as a guiding element in this project, symbolizes the determination of the borders. Note well, that these borders were established several years ago by agreements between the governments of Russia and Ukraine. Recently, on May 16, 2022 (about 3 months after the operations began), in one of the videos posted by Oleg Synegubov on his Facebook profile, we can see how soldiers of the 227th battalion of the 127th brigade of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces, report to President Zelensky that the frontier post on the border has been dug up again. This video was widely commented on in the Russian media and press and was assessed as fake news. It became an element of Putin’s media war. He is creating falsified reality and spreading provocations, as a result starting a hybrid war. He manipulates people’s moods, supporting and provoking separatist aspirations. The post I used breaks down into 4 vertical parts. They go to the sides while turning around their axis. Then they slide back to the center. After each such movement, they fold into a Russian or Ukrainian border post. The object itself does not interact with the viewer. The viewer is an observer.

MJ: In your opinion, can art be an effective medium that gives voice to important events that are maybe not fully understood or received by the public with insufficient attention?
TO: I’m not sure if art can be an effective medium, but it is for sure an important and visible medium.

Art should not replace the state apparatus, but if it malfunctions, artists who are sensitive to such social and political situations, by their works they can highlight it, point it, reveal the widely ‘unwanted.’

Does this change anything? It can, I think. Sometimes bringing out uncomfortable topics to the surface and presenting them to the public can have an impact. For instance, it can force sluggish officials to work or the state apparatus to change some regulations. This is how socially and politically engaged art works. But whether art has a causative effect and whether it should have, is debatable. I think the important thing is not to fall into the trap of social activism or journalism.

MJ: The exhibition’s name is a travesty of the title of one of the most famous works of 20th century literature – the anti-war novel ‘All Quiet on the Western Front.’ It is a story of a ’lost generation’ who spent their youth in the trenches. But it also discusses the role of people’s duty. What is the duty in times of war, you think? And more specifically, what is the duty of the artist?

TO: During the war, there were artists who grabbed a rifle, while others took a brush to paint, some wrote songs, and others sang them to soldiers at the front. Everyone individually analyzes and makes decisions on how to fulfill their civic duty. Maybe not civic, because you can be at odds with the state you are a citizen of. But one duty is certain, and beyond citizenship, it is a human duty to fight evil. It is about the attitude that determines our humanity. I don’t know if artists have a special role to play in such events and situations. Should they be treated somehow better? I think that this valuation is dangerous. But one thing is certain, the war has claimed a regretful number of human lives, and it is a pity for every human existence, every human being that loses their life in a senseless war.

Mieszkanie Gepperta gallery, photo by Małgorzata Kujda

MJ: With a topic like war, the question always is: how to show such a difficult and delicate topic? What to show and what not? Are there any limitations? It is a matter of the photographer’s ethics, commonly mentioned… What aspects did you struggle with?

TO: I agree, it is very easy to offend someone with art that touches upon such horrific, blood-curdling, and heartbreaking events. These are difficult topics because they show human misfortunes and tragedies. As a human being, I try my best to support Ukraine. As an artist, I try to be objective and present a somewhat universal world, a timeless dimension, so to say. Of course, I am trying, which does not mean that I am successful. In the very first stage of creating the installation, I already heard voices of criticism. There were accusations about why I will show the Russian post at all. After all, wsie budiet Ukraina. Well, unfortunately it won’t. I show the fact, a mechanism. Leaving the judgment to the viewer. Fortunately, I do not have such dilemmas as war correspondents. I don’t know what I would have done in their place. Would I drop the camera to help the injured? But then, how would the world know about the horror of war?

MJ: From what angle did you decide to delve into and show in the installation the political situation beyond our eastern border?

TO: As I mentioned, I am not judging, but trying to show Ukrainians fighting for their freedom and the constant battle between national, independent aspirations of the Ukrainian people with the Kremlin’s colonial aspirations. The state of constant change and the political game that Moscow has been leading for decades. The goal of Russian politics (Russia, the USSR and then the Russian Federation) was and is to destabilize the situation in what is today Ukraine. Putin’s aim is to weaken freedom movements and suppressing the feeling of national identity of the Ukrainian people. The Ukrainian SSR and then, after gaining independence, Ukraine, as a free state, were to be absolutely subject to Moscow’s influence. Programmatic plans (such as the resettlement of families from central Russia or Belarus to the depopulated areas of eastern Ukraine after the great famine) have led to the fact that separatist movements are quite strong and there is a large part of society with pro-Russian sentiments.

Putin is successfully fueling these sentiments, especially after the Euromaidan events. Therefore, my border post is constantly changing color from Ukrainian to Russian. Because this state is not temporary, and I am afraid it will last a long time. Now the post is in the ‘Russian and Ukrainian’ positions are the same. There is a war, and its outcome is not a foregone conclusion. However, I hope that someday I will be able to reduce the Russian position of the post, and it will remain permanently in the position of Ukraine.

Szewska gallery, photo by Małgorzata Kujda

MJ: The mobile object, the border post, was created in cooperation with Krzysztof Skrzynecki – a Faculty of Computer Science graduate at the University of Wrocław. What exactly was the cooperation on?

TO: I already had the opportunity to work with Krzysztof in 2015, on the occasion of the Venice Biennale exhibition. He was still a student at the time, but he was already very much involved in building machines. He also founded a science club, in which he and his friends built a rover to Mars, with which they won several competitions. So he has very broad competences. He is an IT specialist, electronics engineer and robotics specialist. Everything I needed. During the previous project entitled ‘The Green Border’ (from 2015), Krzysztof designed a plate for me, which controlled the movements of the machine at the appropriate moments of the film displayed on the screen. This time I called Krzysztof and told him what I was planning to do. We met and I showed him the mock-up explaining what movement I want to create, on what scale, and from what elements. Krzysztof designed the entire mechanism and designed the electronic components. He wrote the code and programmed specially prepared boards. I did not participate in this process. I don’t know anything about it. However, we were building the machine together. We milled, cut Krzysztof’s elements into cnc, and rolled them. Then, under the supervision of Krzysztof, I put the components together, welded the structure, and put the cables. I also built and painted the part, let’s call it, the visible part – the pillars of the post.

MJ: Cross-domain collaboration is usually very open to new aspects and points of view. What is your experience in this matter? Have you collaborated with scientists before, and what is it like to work with younger generations?

TO: To me, such collaborations are always very refreshing and stimulating. I learn a lot throughout the process. I get to know other points of view, also on art. On the occasion of such cooperation, a wonderful exchange of views takes place. I hope it works both ways. Of course, such cross-domain collaboration, like any other collaboration, is not always stress-free. Sometimes it takes time to find a common ground. Age doesn’t matter to me. It is the approach to life and work.