Magdalena Lazar in her latest artistic practice focuses on exploring the topic of interspecies relations. The result of her activities are objects and video works that aim to establish inclusive relationships between humans and non-human beings. In her work, Lazar often raises the issue of appropriation of the body in a system based on the constant reproduction of labor power. At the BWA Krosno exhibition, which will last from May 11 to June 2, 2024, the artist, in cooperation with curator Zofia Małysa-Janczy, explores the affirmative bond and the entanglement of the subject in a network of relationships with other organisms. This means that the concept of difference is no longer defined negatively, but becomes a starting point for celebrating non-antagonistic interspecies relations.
Aleksandra Lisek: Your work undoubtedly interweaves matter and the narrative that accompanies it. What comes first in the creative process?
Magdalena Lazar: Often these two aspects intertwine quite freely. Recently, the starting point is scientific research, but what interests me most is the impulse to carry it out. For example, the exhibition “Laboratory of Living Sentiments” was based on a love story. Recognized neuroscientist and astrobiologist Dr. Agata Kołodziejczyk, once a high school student in love, began experiments on the behavior of a rose flower to maintain a “living sentiment” for the boy she was in love with. Currently, there are companies that offer services of preserving wedding bouquets in the form of live flowers, without drying them. It turns out that working through various emotions of an individual, but also problems of a broader social spectrum, can be found where one needs to bend down, get dirty or undergo an experiment. That’s why I find it very interesting to study the potential of dead matter.
A.L.: To what extent is the latest exhibition at BWA Krosno a continuation of transmedia, multi-sensory installations of previous works, in which the starting point is a conflict, a point of rupture or entanglement in a media network of connections between stories, subjects and matter?
M.L.: The exhibition at BWA Krosno will combine previous works with a new installation “Unfortunate Detritus”. I focus on dead matter, which in everyday life we try not to notice, or remove and which disgusts us. Detritus in scientific terminology is fine, dead organic matter such as dead remains of plants, animals and their excrements occurring on the surface of the soil, at the bottom of water reservoirs or floating in the water column. The title of the installation perversely refers to frequent questions asked by people from aquarium forums about how to remove excess dead matter in a contaminated aquarium. This is, in a way, an expression of our attitude towards what is considered useless. But the remains may become, for example, an amoeba’s home. In the experiment, a fragment of a dead crustacean was taken over by it and it became its squatter. This situation can be referred to as squatting the fight against housing hunger created by the government or depriving access to other basic goods such as culture or education is more important than property rights.
A.L.: How has your artistic language and the use of speculative fabulations evolved over recent years?
M.L.: I have never been attached to one technique. When I entered the Faculty of Graphics at the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow, I quickly became absorbed in Digital Imaging thanks to wonderful lecturers such as Prof. Waldemar Węgrzyn, Kuba Woynarowski and later Kuba Skoczek. After graduation, I worked in advertising, which was exhausting, but also became the basis for the work “Venus” – a 3D animation that touched upon the problem of social entanglements resulting from workaholism and alternatives to the monetary system. After a long break, I decided to return to steel and welding, which gives me a lot of satisfaction and is well connected with the topics I now cover in my work. I share a studio with the sculptor Michalina Bigaj, who encouraged me to return to physical works instead of files. After making the metal set for the performance “Liquid Sound”, I again felt the thrill of working with metal. Art, whether conceptual or not, operates on high emotions. Without it, it’s just uninteresting. Pipilotti Rist’s message was important to me: “Remember to respect the viewer, he came to your exhibition and could have gone to the mountains or to church.”
A.L.: Please tell me about strategies for exploring errors or omissions in architectural structures and attempts to implement utopian scenarios in installations. I am curious about DIY strategies in speculative projects dealing with topics related to sustainable access to resources, criticizing the situation in which the market and political interests play a greater role than human relationships. Was it more difficult to implement this type of projects in the institutional field in 2013 and is it any better today?
M.L.: In 2013, Bunkier Sztuki was a unique place, managed by Piotr Cypryański, who, although initially criticized, turned out to be open to experiments and dialogue with activists and young creators from outside the artistic mainstream. The gallery hosted initiatives such as the “After Capitalism” discussion group and the “Culture Reservoir” mobile gallery, which enlivened the city’s cultural life on summer days. “Zbiornik”, based on the energy of young Krakow artists, presented experimental exhibitions, including “Something Remained”. I remember Bunkier from that time as a place open to various initiatives. I have the impression that currently, this type of venture comes to life only in niche places run by artists (I only mean Krakow).
A.L.: Is treating the architecture of the BWA building as spaces worth exploring a reference to the idea of experimenting with various types of artistic activities, such as “gonzo curating”, i.e. being in opposition to the institutional circulation or on its periphery?
M.L.: When preparing for the current project with the curator Zosia Janczy, we did not know where we would present it. We planned to create a dense exhibition that would break the viewer from the traditional rhythm of sightseeing. I like shows where you can lie down if you feel like it. Our exhibition will be the opposite of those that only place works on or under the walls. The BWA space in Krosno is specific – there is a heavy black truss above our heads. We want to use it but also tame it a bit.
A.L.: Would you say that some of these activities use sabotage strategies?
M.L.: I wouldn’t call it sabotage, but rather an organic familiarization of a space that may be stressful for a viewer not involved in the art. Giving tours of exhibitions gives me great pleasure. I like to explain in an accessible way why something was created and what stories lie behind various works. In my family, I am the only one involved in art, my partner is an accountant, so I know firsthand why people are sometimes afraid to go to an exhibition. The language of curatorial texts can be overwhelming, and descriptions of works in some museums often befuddle the viewer. That is why the role of tours and accompanying events in the exhibition space is so important.
A.L.: I would like to ask you about the mycological pact mentioned in the exhibition text. This is undoubtedly a counterweight to the practices of appropriation of the body in a system based on the compulsion of continuous production and reproduction of labor power. What alternative strategies for expanding the field of our optics of reality can be proposed through artistic activities?
M.L.: Human’s relationship with fungi, or the world of mushrooms, has always taken place, although we were not always aware of it. Currently, research is being carried out on the use of mushrooms to diagnose the stage of cancer based on their development in the body. Mushrooms can be a warning signal, change consciousness, but also decompose our bodies. These aspects interested me, especially at a difficult time when women still do not have full rights to their bodies. The above-mentioned scientist friend, Dr. Kołodziejczyk, once mentioned that electrical impulses in the brain propagate similarly to impulses in the mycelium. Since mushrooms have so many functions and possibilities, and are so genetically diverse, maybe this is where we can look for solutions to gain the missing control. These are fantasies that I used to be ashamed to express. However, I have always been interested in stories that sound unbelievable but are true. Conversations with scientists have encouraged me not to hide these fantasies, even if they seem idiotic. Of course, from a rational point of view, the solution is more and more conscious people in politics who want to change the law. I would like as many women as possible to decide on this move, not necessarily just because it is forced by quotas.
A.L.: Could you tell us more about your cooperation with scientists, the “Silver-White Inhale / Cobalt Exhale” project and your work with the serotonin lamp, fungi and organisms?
M.L.: We met Dr. Agata Kołodziejczyk after her interview in Wysokie Obcasy, which inspired me a lot. I had a lot of questions for her and she turned out to be an extremely open person, inviting me to her home for a long and inspiring conversation. At that time, I was interested in experiments and prototypes, so Agata asked me to participate in an analog space mission. It was not a typical artistic residency, but a scientific training experiment for young scientists interested in the space industry. The habitats where the missions took place are unique on a European scale and bring together young scientists from all over the world. During the project – a 10-day mission, we examined, among other things, space contamination, and plant growth in simulated microgravity, and controlled the amount of liquids and garbage on the “ship”. We were cut off from sunlight, living and working in a small space, under the constant care of a psychologist. The team I joined included a student specializing in extreme medicine and an extraordinary woman from India, who, a few years after our experiment, has already completed many stages and is being written about in the largest Indian magazines. I’m almost sure that in some time I will be able to say – I once met a girl who went into space.
A.L.: This means that establishing cooperation with scientists can become a long-term relationship.
M.L.: Our paths with Dr. Agata Kołodziejczyk have crossed many times. The scientist helped me substantively with the exhibition “Laboratory of Living Sentiments”, and I took part in the mission organized by her. I follow her actions and support her with all my heart. Recently I also had the opportunity to collaborate with biologist Professor Bartosz Płachno, the exhibition in Krosno is the result of our meetings in the laboratory and I hope that this is just the beginning.
A.L.: Is the potential of the glass material and the historical context of the glassworks in Krosno present at the exhibition?
M.L.: This aspect was of great importance to me. I grew up in a home where products from the Ząbkowice Glassworks were used. My grandma often served us jelly in iconic bowls designed by Eryka Trzewik-Drost, who developed patterns for the production of pressed glass. As a child, I had no idea about their origins And legacy. In fact, it was only during my studies that I began to rediscover the values of glass from a purely practical point of view, but also by buying those beautiful pieces of design and selling them on various vintage platforms. As my love for glass grew, I watched with horror the decline of Polish glassworks. Unfortunately, in addition to the glass-producing giants in the Far East, the recent change in gas prices is also affecting the operating manufacturers. I really wanted to meet real glassworkers and participate in their creative process. Ultimately, I managed to do it at Huta Szkła Sabina in Rymanów near Krosno, founded by Mr. Henryk Rysz, who had artistic ambitions and founded his own artistic glassworks. While working with him and seven other glassmakers on pieces for the “Luminous Barter, Moist Coalitions” exhibition, I experienced the adrenaline of liquid glass and the pace of work, quickly forgetting about the lack of sleep. This experience was extremely important and inspiring for me.
Magdalena Lazar „Świetliste bartery, wilgotne koalicje”,
Curator: Zofia Małysa-Janczy
from May 11 to June 2, 2024
BWA Krosno, Wojciech Robert Portius 4, 38-400 Krosno
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Magdalena Lazar, “Luminous Barters, Moist Coalitions” exhibition, BWA Krosno, photo by Patryk Ogorzałek. -
Magdalena Lazar, “Luminous Barters, Moist Coalitions” exhibition, BWA Krosno, photo by Patryk Ogorzałek. -
Magdalena Lazar, “Luminous Barters, Moist Coalitions” exhibition, BWA Krosno, photo by Patryk Ogorzałek. -
Magdalena Lazar, “Luminous Barters, Moist Coalitions” exhibition, BWA Krosno, photo by Patryk Ogorzałek. -
Magdalena Lazar, “Luminous Barters, Moist Coalitions” exhibition, BWA Krosno, photo by Patryk Ogorzałek. The exhibition is funded by the Hestia Artistic Journey Foundation. -
Magdalena Lazar, “Luminous Barters, Moist Coalitions” exhibition, BWA Krosno, photo by Patryk Ogorzałek.
The exhibition is funded by the Hestia Artistic Journey Foundation.
