A Girl wearing a blue dress. Helena Stiasny reinterprets Tamara Łempicka’s nude drawings.

As we reach the midpoint of the year, many are reflecting on the past few months’ most significant artistic and cultural events. One major highlight was the release of the book “The Story of Art Without Men” by British historian and curator Katy Hessel in May. The Art Basel art fair also made headlines this year, with the most expensive work sold being the diptych “Sunflowers” by American painter Joan Mitchell. Additionally, women’s art has been a prominent topic in Polish cultural institutions, such as Warsaw’s MSN and the Gdansk Museum, which have both held monographic exhibitions dedicated to female artists like Marija Prymachenko and Olga Boznanska. Is this year shaping up to be dominated by women in art? The recent “Blue Dress” exhibition at Warsaw’s Metropolitana provides a glimpse into the stories of female artists from different generations and their roles in global historical and social discourse.

The “Blue Dress” exhibition serves as a starting point for a dialogue on the intergenerational evolution and position of women in art history. It is the first public presentation of Tamara de Lempicka’s nude drawings, portraying her lover Rafaëla. Almost a hundred years later, Helena Stiasny reinterprets those drawings by depicting her female friends in poses that recreate Rafaëla’s gestures and facial expressions. The series of paintings juxtaposes the 20th century figure of femme fatale with that of a close friend, whose sisterly gaze highlights other women’s agency, sensibility, and intellect. I spoke with the curators – Katarzyna Rij and Julita Deluga – about the premise and about the behind-the-scenes work on the exhibition.

Julia Gorlewska: Let’s start from the beginning. “Blue Dress” is the title of your exhibition. The motif of a blue dress has appeared in a variety of contexts throughout art history. I’m curious about why you chose this motif and what it means.

Katarzyna Rij: The symbolism of the colour blue has been present in the iconography of art history for years, carrying different meanings. The title of the exhibition came quite naturally. It refers to Helena’s inspiration drawn from de Lempicka’s drawings and to her depiction of a girl wearing a blue dress. It is also a reflection on the evolving position of women over the years. The word “fight” is prevalent in feminist discourse, and I wanted to draw attention to its consequences, such as sadness and melancholy, which are symbolised by the colour of the dress. We raise issues that are scarcely discussed. In the media we often hear about how much work remains to be done in this area, but never about the cost of the fight, not just for women but for society as a whole. One could say that the title of the exhibition is organic. It refers to Helena’s works, but also touches on the issues that interest me personally. Of course, this is just one of the subjects examined by the exhibition.

Julita Deluga: When I spoke with her about the show, Helena stressed the importance of the technical aspects of her paintings. She’s fascinated by technology. She enjoys learning about it, reads a lot, and uses various pigments that she prepares and blends herself. While working on her paintings, she ensures that the colours are expressive and luminous, not yellowish. That’s why her blue is so exceptional – she created the shade herself. Similar colours can be seen in de Lempicka’s paintings, as well as in Renaissance paintings, which Helena finds deeply inspiring.

JG: When considering international art shows, there seems to be a tendency of connecting and comparing works of artists from different generations. Could you please elaborate on the origins of the project? Why did you decide to juxtapose these two artists?

KR: The starting point was when the Van Rij Gallery in Krakow funded the award of the 16th LOOSTRO 2023 Autumn Art Salon at BWA Ostrowiec. The special prize was a solo exhibition by the selected artist. I was extremely pleased that Helena was awarded the special mention. I’ve been following her career for a while and I’m filled with appreciation. In the meantime, I met Marisa de Lempicka, a great-granddaughter of Tamara de Lempicka, and we entered into a collaboration. When she arrived in Poland, we spent some time together and got to know each other. I told her more about our activities, our programme, and about our  upcoming exhibitions. We mentioned the fact that the Van Rij Gallery is in possession of the original drawings by the art deco queen, which have never been displayed publicly. One might say that the world fell in love with art deco once again.Following this momentum, other large retrospective exhibitions of de Lempicka’s works were organised in institutions such as the National Museum in Lublin, the Mark Roefler Museum in Konstancin-Jeziorna and the National Museum in Krakow. Meanwhile, I saw the self-portrait by Helena in a jeep that sparked instant associations with de Lempicka’s self-portrait in the green Bugatti.. Helena writes commentaries on her own works, and as it turned out, my association was correct. De Lempicka was a huge inspiration and a reference point for Helena, which sparked my curiosity. At the time, I thought that showing it side by side with the drawings of Rafaëla would be an exciting starting point for a reflection on the shifting position of women over the years. Helena accepted my proposal, which was wonderful. I wondered whether it would work out, and it did.

JG: The women of Tamara de Lempicka are statuesque, resolute, and elegant; they’re invincible. In Helena’s case, their power manifests itself in a different fashion. Her female subjects are more expressive. They’re depicted experiencing a variety of emotions. What, in your opinion, connects the works of these two artists, and what sets them apart?

JD: A correlation between these two artists is clear in Helena’s paintings, such as in the aforementioned “Self-portrait in a Green Jeep.” She has also stated outright in our conversations that she was inspired by de Lempicka’s works.The women portrayed in both of the artists’ paintings are often of themselves or their friends – they’re women from the artist’s close surroundings. The entire concept of the exhibition, which involved entrusting Helena with Tamara’s drawings as a source of inspiration, was a bit of an artistic experiment. What I value in Helena’s work method is her very down-to-earth, critical point of view, even when faced with de Lempicka’s pieces. On the one hand, she appreciates paintings of human silhouettes,the shapes, the conveying of the details such as the softness of the fabrics. On the other hand, she notices the over-stylised mannerisms, that she then substitutes with the use of saturated and intense colours, among other things. I believe the correlations between these two artists are mainly formal and rather exclusive to this project. After all, it’s difficult to draw comparisons between women from different time periods. A common quality is certainly the empowerment of the depicted women, which still manifests itself in various ways. De Lempicka’s women are statuesque and cold, whereas Helena depicts them as unrestrained and emotional.

JG: Did Helena invite her friends to participate in the project? How did they find it?

JD: It was far from easy. One of the models does yoga, and she still found it very difficult to recreate some of Rafaëla’s poses. Scenery was important to Helena, and so her friends posed against the backdrop of tapestries, reflected in a very rich manner. All the folds, creases and light flashes were depicted perfectly. As an art historian, I can see that she was inspired not only by de Lempicka, but also by classical painting in general, and even by Hellenistic Greece.

JG: Let’s talk about  the drawings that came from de Lempicka’s granddaughter. They date back to 1928, when Tamara studied female nudes. What should we pay attention to while viewing them?

KR: We have the pleasure to be the first gallery to ever feature these drawings. Worth highlighting is the fact that de Lempicka’s artistic practice evokes strong emotions among critics and art historians, which in my opinion only confirms her unique style and enormous talent. She managed to swiftly achieve international acclaim, even though at that moment in time she was not actively pursuing art. It was rare. I wouldn’t want to decisively state what makes these drawings special – I prefer leaving it to the viewers. However, they certainly project de Lempicka’s strong personality and character, which is what makes her paintings so intriguing.

JG: Coming back to Helena, who is one of the most sought-after artists of the younger generation – her practice often deals with the subjects related to sisterhood and motherhood. What was it that made you interested in her work?

KR: Apart from being a gallerist and curator, I’m also a collector.. Art is my life and passion. I was familiar with Helena’s works long before the LOOSTRO award. What I look for, first and foremost, is personality. I’m interested in the way the artist speaks about their work, about what motivates and inspires them. The fact that we’re representing Helena is a great privilege and pleasure, and I strongly believe that it will be one of the greatest exhibitions that I could ever attend. In my work, I focus on authenticity. Therefore, our gallery collaborates with very different artists. We represent Kris Marchlak, who examines the themes related to the LGBTQ+ community;, Helena, who’s a feminist, as well as Paweł Orłowski and Tamara Berdowska. Our goal is to showcase authenticity and diversity, not a specific style or subject. As a result, our audience can decide for themselves what they like and explore different social and historic contexts. We’re open to diversity and we want to share it with the world. Our programme is the stage that hosts a variety of performances, their common denominator being the unmistakable character and personality of an artist. 

JD: I appreciated the fact that Helena is not only very ambitious, but also very sensible when it comes to her career development. I’m also impressed by her knowledge of art history, literature and the feminist movement. Her art is the amalgamation of various inspirations. Apart from the classics, her paintings draw on elements from artists such as David Hockney and Mark Rothko. Looking at her work, one can clearly see the evolution of her art history knowledge, as well as her improved craftsmanship and level of technical proficiency. Even as a student she was inspired by animation, and that fairy-tale-like quality and references to mythological figures have seeped into her own practice.

JG: The exhibition aligns perfectly with today’s cultural trends. In recent years, several groundbreaking books and exhibitions on female artists  have emerged, challenging the traditional dominance of painters like Picasso and Gauguin. Did this influence your approach to the exhibition? Why is it crucial to address these topics?

KR: Although it is undeniably an exhibition about women, and for women, that wasn’t the primary premise of our collaboration. As I’ve mentioned before, every piece an artist creates is a self-portrait of sorts – their authenticity and personality are what distinguish them.. That’s why the collaboration with Helena is so important to me. Her practice is not only visually appealing, but it also refers to critical social issues. I hope that this exhibition will provoke a social debate.

JD: The subject of equality is very important and I’m glad that the exhibition could spark a wider conversation. In my opinion, one of the differences between Helena’s and Tamara’s practices is in their way of speaking about these inequalities. Naturally, it’s also a sign of the times. In the 20th century, de Lempicka’s paintings were as fascinating as they were controversial, aggressively accentuating the powerful female nature. A century later, the feminist practice of Helena doesn’t really provoke such fierce controversy, in spite of its distinctive quality. I believe this to be positive, because the purpose of art is not to shock but to encourage reflection and offer a new perspective on the world. Helena is aware of it. As I’ve mentioned, she possesses vast knowledge, juggling long-standing art history motifs, while crafting a fresh, contemporary narrative in her own distinctive style.

JG: Have you thought about any other possible comparisons of artists from completely different generations? Whose work could be presented in a similar way?

KR: We’re working on presenting the latest series of sculptures by Paweł Orłowski, who was inspired by Francisco Goya’s “Los Caprichos” prints. Even though the juxtaposing of these two artists might seem controversial, it also serves as confirmation that the old masters’ art remains important, and can acquire new meanings through contemporary reinterpretations. Goya’s prints are a social satire, and Paweł reinterprets the portrayed faults, comments on them, and confronts them with the current cultural norms. The series is complete, featuring both paintings and sculptures. Paweł Orłowski was educated both in Poland and abroad, and so has a broad perspective, as well as an intercultural background. I believe that it is shaping up to be an extremely interesting presentation that would allow viewers to retrace the evolution and manifestations of established social norms. These kinds of comparisons are very compelling,  enhancing our awareness of an ever-shifting cultural landscape.

JD: I think that such comparisons, especially regarding living artists, whose work hasn’t yet been thoroughly examined by art historians, can indeed be controversial. For this reason, we’re not confronting entire artistic outputs but only fragments, confirmed as primary sources of inspiration. Helena refers to specific works, not to de Lempicka’s entire oeuvre. Similarly, Mateusz Szczypiński incorporated the Arnolfini Portrait in one of his collages, indicating inspiration from Jan van Eyck, but this inspiration is limited to certain periods or single works, not the entire spectrum. These inspirations are more varied and complex than it might seem, so making general statements that one artist inspired another can be overly simplistic and detrimental to contemporary artists.