Second skin

Second Skin is an exhibition devoted to doubleness, alternative worlds, but also the relation with nature and the search for the sense of security. The group show features artists of the young generation from Gdańsk, Cracow and Katowice.

Diana Ronnberg moves deftly across a diverse range of styles and media. Her stage images acquire extremely different forms – from lyrical feminine photographs, to simple childlike drawings, to bold music videos of the duo Combi Cats, which she co-creates with Kordian Lewandowski. The artist also feels at home in the world of literature – she is the author of the book Sercem w lesie [By the Heart in the Forest]. Diana Ronnberg changes her artistic skin in a fluid and very convincing way, and therefore her works continue to strike the viewers as surprising. In turn, the work of Kamila Model is more balanced – her paintings are filled with bright patches of pastel colours. The shapes of abstract forms evoke the world of microorganisms examined under the microscope, which seem to flow in front of the viewer’s eyes. The artist’s paintings emanate tranquillity and present nature – the source of her inspiration – as a mysterious, safe and benign world. In formal terms, Model’s works bear resemblance to the delicate structure of the human skin. Or maybe the skin of an unknown extraterrestrial being? Another artist, Agata Kus, is interested in dualism, the second face, and deconstruction. Her large-scale paintings represent what seems to be everyday stories, which are real and surreal at the same time. The symmetrical reflection of the presented figures may bring to mind split personality. Or maybe just a sisterly relation with the mirror reflection? Or impaired, double vision? The seemingly simple narratives evoke a plethora of interpretative tropes, introducing the viewer into a parallel world of the protagonists of Agata Kus’ paintings. Natalia Bażowska creates paintings and installations that focus on human nature – human physicality and emotions. Her works often concern the moments of passage, the instants when we drop our old skin, but still have not made it to the other side. We are suspended in a safe cocoon, right before hatching out.

“Second Skin” is the first exhibition in the cycle “North – South.” The project showcases works by Tri-City artists in confrontation with artists from the south of Poland.