LandE scape
Karol Kochanowski
CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW
to the viewer at some level. The imagined nature of my works comes from desire for new solutions and searching for unseen. At the same time, running away from images of daily routines for the sake of digging for unknown, somehow, helps me to deal with depression and anxiety. The state of my mental health brought a need to work on the subject of relationship between creativity and mental disorders. My BA Fine Art dissertation titled“ Insanity – different way of thinking or just madness” was a starting point of continuing research on creative nature of mental disorders.
Your practice sums up a contemplation on personal feelings surrounding being unable to exist in the absurdity that marks out the environment and clearly reflect your engagement in socio political issues: but while artists from the contemporary scene, as Ai WeiWei or more recently Jennifer Linton, use to express open socio-political criticism in their works, you seem more interested to hint the direction, inviting the viewers to a process of self-reflection that may lead to subvert a variety of usual, almost stereotyped cultural categories. Do you consider that your works could be considered political in a certain sense or did you seek to maintain a more neutral approach? And in particular, what could be in your opinion the role that an artist could play in the contemporary society?
Rather the form in which mass media serve us everyday filtered information than current political situation of the World influences my work. Being aware of doubtful character of political / social views we receive on daily bases, it triggered whole chain of thoughts, which led me to some drastic conclusions and brought more questions about authenticity of information served by mass media and the reasons behind it. I’ ve focused on these subjects while working on my 2014 solo exhibition“# SELFIE _ SHOW- OFF” at People History Museum in Manchester. We hear so many opinions on one subject, different mass media provide us various pictures of the reality, and we can’ t be sure who’ s right and who’ s a liar. I can’ t see any other solution for myself as an artist than being a neutral observer. In my opinion it doesn’ t matter what decision we will make, which government we support, which party to vote on, there are always pros and cons of any choice. It doesn’ t mean my position is the only or the right one. My view is, that any choice, either bad or good lead to something, just like in my art practice, it brings change to better or failure, but overall, we as a human kind make very slow progress. I believe that my role as an artist is to bring general awareness of questionable nature of surrounding us world.
Your practice could be considered a reaction to mass media that shape our societies, where the notion of truth grows more and