14th edition of the SURVIVAL Art Review
24-28 June, 2016
The history of the vast industrial areas near Grabiszyńska Street in Wrocław dates back to 1869. Many inhabitants of Wrocław today seem to perceive this place as a relic of the People’s Republic of Poland and closely associate it with the then-ubiquitous work ethos. In June this year, the organisers of the SURVIVAL Art Review will invite Wrocław-dwellers to rediscover this unique venue through the prism of contemporary art.
The SURVIVAL Art Review is nowadays one of the largest reviews of art in public space in Poland. The event is intended to present contemporary art outside cultural institutions, in untypical venues in Wrocław. SURVIVAL is held in abandoned buildings and building complexes as well as in public spaces bustling with the everyday life of the city.
Throughout its 14 years of existence, SURVIVAL has visited a variety of places, including the former Feature Films Studio, the building of the Institute of Pharmacy of the Medical University, the Central Railway Station or the former riot police barracks. Each edition of the review is held under a different site-specific motto, which is closely connected with the subject of the event. In this way, the organisers together with the invited artists and curators reveal nooks and crannies that are normally inaccessible to the city dwellers, and encourage them to look for new contexts, meanings and associations. Little wonder, then, that each year SURVIVAL attracts art lovers as well as enthusiasts of architecture, history, and a large number of random visitors.
In 2016, the SURVIVAL Art Review will be held under the motto “Workroom” in one of the historic production floors of the Lathing Machines Factory (FAT), which was constructed in 1934. The idea of the 14th edition of SURVIVAL will be connected with the broadly-defined concept of work and the accompanying notions such as industry, production, technology, or tricks of the trade.
Each year hundreds of artists from all over Europe submit their entries for the competition of artworks to be shown during the Review. The general curators then select several dozen most interesting submissions. Apart from the works shown within the competition, the main exhibition will feature pieces by most interesting artists from Wrocław, including Maciej Bączyk, the Legendary LUXUS Group, or Karina Marusińska, the winner of this year’s edition of the WARTO award.
motto: Workroom
venue: Lathing Machines Factory FAT HACO, Grabiszyńska 281, Wrocław
curators: Anna Kołodziejczyk, Anna Stec, Michał Bieniek