Wojtek Hoeft „Return of Giants”

Return of Giants is a sculpture installation of Wojtek Hoeft whose life is split between Poland and Germany. And it seems that this very division served him as a source of inspiration to tell the story of his search for identity, transition, flights and returns.

An old Kashubian legend of the giants, locally known as stolems, inspired the creation of a group of representational sculptures accommodated at Gdansk City Gallery 2. Stolems used to inhabit Pomerania and spoke the Kashubian language. Sadly, they were forced to leave their homeland, and therefore they relocated to Scandinavia, where they resided until the time of their extinction. However, the last of their population recalled the fact that somewhere at the coastline live the people who speak his language. And therefore, harried by loneliness, longing for communication and seeking the connection, he finally returned to the place of his belonging.

Stolems, like millions of other people, had to emigrate, driven either by economic situation or personal reasons. Whenever there is emigration, there is always a motif. The decision to leave is never taken lightly as it bears a heavy burden. It marks a turning point of human life with the potential to transform individuals. Similarly, re-emigration is not bare of negative consequences. Both processes: of departure and return include a high risk of incongruity, loss of identity and desolation. The capacity of the venue in which Hoeft arranges his giants is not big enough. He fits them in such a way, that they become unfit there. By their overrepresentation, they seem to overcrowd the gallery and the spatial limits become the metaphor of the rip, alienation and determination. By the means of these sculptures Hoeft spins the topical story in which the his personal experience overlaps with the recent political events and therefore provides a point of departure for a broader reflection and discourse over the state of humanity.