Crimestory

The exhibition proposes to redefine the position assigned to an artist within the society as well as the role of art in social life. It constitutes an attempt to revise contemporary concepts related to the relation between art and its audience. It sets out to undermine the thread of understanding between an artist and their viewers, which is actually feebler than it seems. As viewers, we wish to learn about art, to make friends and familiarize ourselves with it. Contemporary artists appear to respond to these expectations, taking a step towards the audience.

The tendency to push artists into the arms of the public is reinforced by the nature of institutional life. Contemporary art is an extremely institutionalised domain. Art is accessible for the public almost exclusively via art galleries, museums or art centres. Following a natural institutional instinct, these venues take it upon themselves to popularise and explain art as well as clear up any misunderstanding that may arise in relation to it. Many of them rely on tax financing. Taxpayers make demands and, understandably, claim the right to satisfaction.

The Crimestory exhibition puts forward the suggestion that this right should sometimes be relinquished. Sometimes it may even be impossible to enforce. The idea that one cannot be on perfectly friendly terms with art underlies the show. Art cannot be fully tamed. Frequently, what is the most important in art dwells not within the space of agreement between an artist and the audience but within the space of disagreement, strangeness and conflict.

Wojciech Bąkowski, Tymek Borowski, Olaf Brzeski, Cipedrapskuad, Oskar Dawicki, Mikołaj Długosz, Grzegorz Drozd, Michał Frydrych, Piotr Grabowski, Aneta Grzeszykowska, Mariusz Libel, Jacek Markiewicz, Tomasz Mróz, Laura Pawela, Marek Raczkowski, Karol Radziszewski, Twozywo, Robert Wałęka, Artur Zmijewski