Since its inception in 2021, Piękna Gallery’s New Masters project has emerged as a beacon for identifying and promoting the next generation of contemporary art classics. Stefania Olbrycht sits down with me to discuss the evolution of New Masters and its role and impact in shaping the art landscape. She shares insights on this year’s most anticipated works, and the philosophy guiding their selection.
Monika Juskowiak: We’re meeting today to discuss the New Masters exhibition and auction. Could you tell us more about this project?
Stefania Olbrycht: New Masters is a project we have been developing at Piękna Gallery since 2021. Since its inception nearly a decade ago, our gallery has focused on showcasing the most prominent artists of their time. Initially, this included only representatives of the post-war generation, such as Tadeusz Kantor, Stanisław Fijałkowski, and Teresa Pągowska.
When Przemysław Kasztelewicz and I joined the gallery team, we wanted to identify who might become a “modern classic” of our generation—artists born in the 1980s and 1990s. This led to New Masters, a biannual event showcasing around 20 selected works. Amidst the flood of young and contemporary art auctions, we wanted to present collectors and viewers with only what truly deserves their precious attention and time.
MJ: This is already the seventh edition of the New Masters featuring around 20 works. Could you share more about what this year’s edition will unveil?
SO: The highlight of this edition is undoubtedly Burning Tree (PL Płonące drzewo) by Karol Palczak, painted in 2020. Since the first edition of New Masters, we’ve aimed to include a work by this exceptional artist, whose place in the canon of this generation is undeniably certain. His outstanding technique and the aura emanating from his paintings reflect his mastery. Palczak honed his skills by studying reproductions of Rembrandt and Vermeer, and that timeless quality of the old masters is palpable in his works.
Equally significant is the monumental canvas Love in a Mist by Edyta Hul. Beneath the layers of seemingly dynamic organic forms lies a mystery. Hul’s unique technique, combining oil paint with industrial enamel, produces effects that are simply extraordinary. Currently, Edyta is preparing for her first solo exhibition in New York, which is planned for early 2025. Meanwhile, her solo exhibition, Something’s in the Water (PL Coś jest w wodzie), is on view at BWA Bielska Gallery until the end of October, following her Grand Prix win at the 2023 Bielska Jesień Painting Biennale., Karol Palczak also received this award in 2019.
Sculpture also plays a key role in New Masters. Jan Musiałowski, an artist working traditionally in marble, presents his piece Tender Relation (PL Czuła relacja). We expect fierce bidding competition for this work, as many collectors have been eagerly awaiting Musiałowski’s pieces.
MJ: What guides your choices when selecting the works and artists?
SO: New Masters is our own curated selection, but we also take into account the recommendations of experienced experts, critics, and institutions. We follow the Bielska Jesień Biennale, focusing not only on Grand Prix winners but also on those who received distinctions, such as Maja Janczar, or finalists like Jakub Słomkowski and Wojciech Pietrasz. We also look at the rankings in Kompas Młodej Sztuki, where frequent leaders like Agata Kus, Karolina Jabłońska, and Bartosz Kokosiński—who are all featured in this October’s New Masters auction. We listen to art historians, such as Anda Rottenberg, who in her 2020 publication Approaches. Sketches on Polish Artists, starts with Stanisław Fijałkowski and ends with Martyna Ścibior, whose works have been a part of our New Masters offer for three years.
We keep a close eye on exhibitions, from large state institutions to small artist collective projects. This summer, at the Centre of Contemporary Art in Toruń, we were captivated by exhibitions from Martyna Borowiecka and Anna Grzymała. Additionally, since the inception of New Masters, we have collaborated with SC Szyman—one of the most important figures in Polish street art and a key promoter of this entire community.
We select the best works from established names while continuously seeking out artists who may not yet be widely known but, in our opinion, deserve immediate recognition. If I were to describe the values that are closest to us in just a few words, they would be breathtaking beauty and a sense of humor unique to our generation.
MJ: In your opinion, how does this year’s New Masters edition support current trends and directions in art?
SO: For many years now, we’ve observed the dominance of figuration, which is reflected in the selection of works for the seventh edition of New Masters. Artists are now eager to explore worlds that shaped their upbringing—Palczak persistently portrays his hometown village of Krzywcza, while Hul remains immersed in the botanical universe she experienced growing up with her grandparents. Meanwhile, Martyna Borowiecka, Michał Cygan, and Ryszard Szozda revisit childhood tales to comment on contemporary issues and conflicts.
There is a lot of irony and grotesque humor in the works of this generation. For instance, Paweł Czekański’s sculpture Healing Hands is a hand-carrot hybrid. Viewers are initially completely puzzled. Artists love to surprise us but are no longer keen on shocking. The era of shocking with harsh imagery, typical of the critical art of the 1990s, has given way to more subtle and indirect communication.
MJ: In what ways has New Masters evolved over the past editions, and how has the public response shaped this journey?
SO: Between 2021 and 2024, a lot has changed. What we anticipated—the shifting focus of collectors to artists born in the 1980s and 1990s—has already become a reality. Leading collectors we have collaborated with for years now ask us to acquire inaccessible works by artists like Palczak or Kus. A new generation of collectors, contemporaries of these artists, has also emerged and is now able to purchase art. This group is more interested in artists of their age, who comment on their world and grapple with the same issues they face, rather than the work of deceased post-war artists.
With collectors’ attention, financial investment followed. In the first edition of New Masters, the highest auctioned work sold for 28,000 PLN. In this edition, we have work with expected final prices ranging between 100,000 and 150,000 PLN. Those who invested in this generation in 2021, 2022, or earlier, are now seeing returns of several hundred percent. While the financial aspect is important, what matters most to us is that our generation is finally being heard.
MJ: What impact do you hope New Masters will have on the broader art community, both locally and internationally?
SO: We aim to build, with each edition, a catalog of artists who, due to their uniqueness, message, and timelessness, deserve not only a prominent place in the current art market but also a lasting position in the broader field of art over time. So far, our selections and predictions have been accurate, and we watch with satisfaction as the careers of artists featured in New Masters flourish.
Our mission is to ensure that the right art reaches those who understand it and need it in their lives. These collector-artist dialogues are happening internationally as well, and we hope to increasingly facilitate their development.
A very significant audience for the New Masters project is those who wish to embark on their journey into art but do not yet have collecting experience. We listen, advise, and help build not just a collection of objects but a certain awareness and knowledge base about the art world, enabling them to eventually become seasoned collectors.
MJ: Are there plans for future exhibitions after the seventh edition? Are there any developments you’re preparing for the coming years?
SO: We focus on long-term relationships. The principles guiding Piękna Gallery from the start—quality, an uncompromising approach, and trust in our intuition and taste—allow us to build bonds of trust with both artists and collectors.
Our strategy of preparing auctions with just 20 selected pieces is unique to us. We’re not interested in expanding the scale. A narrow selection gives comfort to both collectors and artists, as well as to us because it allows us to devote ample attention to each work. This careful approach enables us to interact with and promote the finest artists and to co-create collections that stand the test of time and will be appreciated by future generations.
