10th Photomonth in KrakowDate:
2012-04-20
- 2012-06-17
The Big One-Oh
The leading motto of the anniversary event is JOIN US!, and its formula takes on a wide range of experimental forms of audience participation. The birthday celebrations will be attended by stars from the world of photography.
Classicists and revolutionaries
The main festival programme will include presentations by seasoned photographers alongside young and angry or nostalgic romantics and uncompromising pioneers, charismatic experimenters and contemplative classicists. Traditionally, the gala opening will be held at the Starmach Gallery, and it will be immediately clear that this is no exaggeration: the exhibition Live Flesh is a selection of photographs from the renowned Poznań Cezary Pieczyński collections, including works by world-famous artists including Nan Goldin, Nobuyoshi Araki, Damien Hirst, Boris Mikhailov, Thomas Ruff, and Jan Saudek.
Alexander Rodchenko (1891-1956) was a star of Russian avant-garde, classicist of contemporary photography and one of the most important artists of the 20th century; his Revolution in Photography goes on display at the Main Building of the National Museum in Krakow. The museum will also host works by one of the seniors of Polish photography, Jerzy Lewczyński (b. 1924), one of the founders of a trend known as anti-photography and later photo archaeology, using found and borrowed images. The exhibition Memory of the Image includes a combination of some of the artist’s best known photos and works never previously displayed.
The programme also includes the exhibition of little known photos by the Belgian Surrealist René Magritte (1898-1967), held at the International Cultural Centre.
While Men Are at War is the title of an exhibition by the Ukrainian scandaliser Sergey Bratkov(b. 1960), with MOCAK presenting two photographic cycles: Kids, exposing the truth of Ukraine’s lost childhoods, and Army Girls depicting beautiful women in uniform. The contrast of the brutal documentary against ironic settings makes the photos a powerful critique of post-Soviet transformation.
Works by the American Sally Mann (b. 1951) arouse admiration and controversy in equal measure. Depicting the naked body, nude childhood forms, and death and decay, the technique seems to blend photography with painting and even sculpture. The exhibition The Family and the Land at the Ethnographic Museum includes works from different stages of her artistic life touching upon recurring subjects closest to her.
The exhibition of images by Jason Evans (b. 1968) Pictures for Looking At and Sculpture for Photography at the Gallery of the Association of Polish Art Photographers is an invitation for the public to join in with the creative process. Well-known for his sensitivity and love of surprises, this master of improvisation will open the exhibition formula to and for the viewers. Anyone feeling a creative impulse can participate in the exhibition; the author is encouraging the visitors to bring along a camera and photograph the objects on display.
Works by the Dutch photographer Viviane Sassen (b. 1972) from the Parasomnia cycle, shown at the Pauza Gallery, are a record of personal journeys-returns to Africa, the artist’s childhood home. They are dominated by a sense of exclusion; her unusual style blurs the boundaries between documentary and fashion and creative photography.
Canary, an exhibition by the UK-based Japanese photographer Lieko Shiga (b. 1980) at the Manggha Museum, is a poetic, meditative vision on the relationship between people and places; an engaging, Baroque image of others’s fears and joys.
Photography and life
The famous British critic Charlotte Cotton (author of the guide The Photograph as Contemporary Art) will work with Polish curators and researchers to create a project Photography in Everyday Life at Contemporary Art Gallery. Especially for this reason, the festival has expanded its scope to include an Experimental Section. During the month-long lectures, seminars and interactive events, the role of photography in our day-to-day lives and its links with social and historical events will be analysed. The section will also include a Visual Reading Room, where we’ll be able to post dedicated publications on visual arts.
Welcome to ShowOFF
One well established part of the festival is the ShowOFF Section, for artists starting their careers wishing to work with renowned curators and fighting to be able to present their photographic and multimedia projects. This year’s jury includes pairs of judges: Grzegorz Piątek and Jarosław Trybuś, Zuza Krajewska and Bartek Wieczorek, Witek Orski and Janek Zamoyski, Adam Pańczuk and Michał Łuczak, and Magdalena and Gaweł Kownacki. They selected 10 projects to implement with the young artists.
31 days with photography
The festival doesn’t just include exhibitions at Kraków’s main galleries; there is also a month-long programme of events such as lectures, meetings, and workshops, forming the interactive part of this year’s festival. Everyone can join in by presenting their own photos, becoming an active exhibition participant, taking part in voting, or even going on a photo date. The Portfolio Review (26 May, Manggha Museum), taking place every year, will be an opportunity to meet professional photographers, photo editors, art critics, and representatives of agencies, journals and galleries to gain useful advice.
So, how is the big one-oh shaping up? Find out for yourself – JOIN US! (Dorota Dziunikowska, “Karnet” monthly)
Photomonth in Krakow 2012
17 May – 17 June
17-21 May: opening weekend
18 May: gala opening at the Starmach Gallery
22 May – 16 June: accompanying events
Main locations: Museum of Contemporary Art in Krakow, Gallery of the Association of Polish Art Photographers, National Museum in Krakow – Main Building, International Cultural Centre, Seweryn Udziela Ethnographic Museum in Kraków, Pauza Gallery, Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology, Starmach Gallery
Organisers: Foundation for Visual Arts with financial support from the Kraków City Office and the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage
www.photomonth.com
The leading motto of the anniversary event is JOIN US!, and its formula takes on a wide range of experimental forms of audience participation. The birthday celebrations will be attended by stars from the world of photography.
Classicists and revolutionaries
The main festival programme will include presentations by seasoned photographers alongside young and angry or nostalgic romantics and uncompromising pioneers, charismatic experimenters and contemplative classicists. Traditionally, the gala opening will be held at the Starmach Gallery, and it will be immediately clear that this is no exaggeration: the exhibition Live Flesh is a selection of photographs from the renowned Poznań Cezary Pieczyński collections, including works by world-famous artists including Nan Goldin, Nobuyoshi Araki, Damien Hirst, Boris Mikhailov, Thomas Ruff, and Jan Saudek.
Alexander Rodchenko (1891-1956) was a star of Russian avant-garde, classicist of contemporary photography and one of the most important artists of the 20th century; his Revolution in Photography goes on display at the Main Building of the National Museum in Krakow. The museum will also host works by one of the seniors of Polish photography, Jerzy Lewczyński (b. 1924), one of the founders of a trend known as anti-photography and later photo archaeology, using found and borrowed images. The exhibition Memory of the Image includes a combination of some of the artist’s best known photos and works never previously displayed.
The programme also includes the exhibition of little known photos by the Belgian Surrealist René Magritte (1898-1967), held at the International Cultural Centre.
While Men Are at War is the title of an exhibition by the Ukrainian scandaliser Sergey Bratkov(b. 1960), with MOCAK presenting two photographic cycles: Kids, exposing the truth of Ukraine’s lost childhoods, and Army Girls depicting beautiful women in uniform. The contrast of the brutal documentary against ironic settings makes the photos a powerful critique of post-Soviet transformation.
Works by the American Sally Mann (b. 1951) arouse admiration and controversy in equal measure. Depicting the naked body, nude childhood forms, and death and decay, the technique seems to blend photography with painting and even sculpture. The exhibition The Family and the Land at the Ethnographic Museum includes works from different stages of her artistic life touching upon recurring subjects closest to her.
The exhibition of images by Jason Evans (b. 1968) Pictures for Looking At and Sculpture for Photography at the Gallery of the Association of Polish Art Photographers is an invitation for the public to join in with the creative process. Well-known for his sensitivity and love of surprises, this master of improvisation will open the exhibition formula to and for the viewers. Anyone feeling a creative impulse can participate in the exhibition; the author is encouraging the visitors to bring along a camera and photograph the objects on display.
Works by the Dutch photographer Viviane Sassen (b. 1972) from the Parasomnia cycle, shown at the Pauza Gallery, are a record of personal journeys-returns to Africa, the artist’s childhood home. They are dominated by a sense of exclusion; her unusual style blurs the boundaries between documentary and fashion and creative photography.
Canary, an exhibition by the UK-based Japanese photographer Lieko Shiga (b. 1980) at the Manggha Museum, is a poetic, meditative vision on the relationship between people and places; an engaging, Baroque image of others’s fears and joys.
Photography and life
The famous British critic Charlotte Cotton (author of the guide The Photograph as Contemporary Art) will work with Polish curators and researchers to create a project Photography in Everyday Life at Contemporary Art Gallery. Especially for this reason, the festival has expanded its scope to include an Experimental Section. During the month-long lectures, seminars and interactive events, the role of photography in our day-to-day lives and its links with social and historical events will be analysed. The section will also include a Visual Reading Room, where we’ll be able to post dedicated publications on visual arts.
Welcome to ShowOFF
One well established part of the festival is the ShowOFF Section, for artists starting their careers wishing to work with renowned curators and fighting to be able to present their photographic and multimedia projects. This year’s jury includes pairs of judges: Grzegorz Piątek and Jarosław Trybuś, Zuza Krajewska and Bartek Wieczorek, Witek Orski and Janek Zamoyski, Adam Pańczuk and Michał Łuczak, and Magdalena and Gaweł Kownacki. They selected 10 projects to implement with the young artists.
31 days with photography
The festival doesn’t just include exhibitions at Kraków’s main galleries; there is also a month-long programme of events such as lectures, meetings, and workshops, forming the interactive part of this year’s festival. Everyone can join in by presenting their own photos, becoming an active exhibition participant, taking part in voting, or even going on a photo date. The Portfolio Review (26 May, Manggha Museum), taking place every year, will be an opportunity to meet professional photographers, photo editors, art critics, and representatives of agencies, journals and galleries to gain useful advice.
So, how is the big one-oh shaping up? Find out for yourself – JOIN US! (Dorota Dziunikowska, “Karnet” monthly)
Photomonth in Krakow 2012
17 May – 17 June
17-21 May: opening weekend
18 May: gala opening at the Starmach Gallery
22 May – 16 June: accompanying events
Main locations: Museum of Contemporary Art in Krakow, Gallery of the Association of Polish Art Photographers, National Museum in Krakow – Main Building, International Cultural Centre, Seweryn Udziela Ethnographic Museum in Kraków, Pauza Gallery, Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology, Starmach Gallery
Organisers: Foundation for Visual Arts with financial support from the Kraków City Office and the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage
www.photomonth.com
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