Zbigniew Libera

was born in 1959. He is one of the most important Polish contemporary artists and a precursor of critical art, working with installations, objects, photography and film. Works include “Lego. Obóz koncentracyjny” (Lego: Concentration Camp), “Pozytywy” (Positives), “Urządzenia korekcyjne” (Corrective Devices), “Jak tresuje się dziewczynki” (How to Train Little Girls) and “Obrzędy intymne” (Intimate Rites).
An Artist of Many Faces
Art + Stories
Experiences

An Artist of Many Faces

Have you ever heard of Wanda Chodasiewicz or Nadia Léger? Or maybe Madame Grabowska, Bauquier or Petrova? All these names refer to one intriguing painter.
Zbigniew Libera
I Was a Little Unruly
Art + Stories
Experiences

I Was a Little Unruly

Kōji Kamoji was born in Japan, but shortly after graduating from art school he moved to Poland, where he has spent the rest of his life making paintings, drawings and installations.
Zbigniew Libera
Always Against the Grain
Art + Stories
Fiction, Opinions

Always Against the Grain

Xawery Dunikowski was the first in Poland to practise sculpture as an art; in fact, he remains one of Poland’s greatest sculptors.
Zbigniew Libera
A Painter in Turbulent Times
Art + Stories
Experiences, Fiction

A Painter in Turbulent Times

The Jewish painter Mela Muter was born to a socialite family in Warsaw and died alone in France. Along the way, she created a remarkable variety of art.
Zbigniew Libera
The King of Krakowskie Przedmieście
Art + Stories
Experiences, Fiction

The King of Krakowskie Przedmieście

Andrzej Partum was an orphan and vagabond, a provocateur of the cultural establishment, and – to some people, at least – mentally ill. But he was above all an artist.
Zbigniew Libera
The People’s Republic of Dwarfs
Art + Stories
Experiences, Fiction

The People’s Republic of Dwarfs

The Orange Alternative was one of the most memorable social movements in the dying years of communism. Why? Because it involved painting dwarfs.
Zbigniew Libera
In Saturn’s Embraces
Art + Stories
Experiences

In Saturn’s Embraces

Born in Upper Silesia to a family of coal-miners, Teofil Ociepka was one of Poland’s best-known naïve artists. He was particularly fascinated by occultism, too.
Zbigniew Libera
Without End
Art + Stories
Opinions

Without End

Death is, of course, an intangible concept while we are living, yet we seem to distance ourselves from even talking about it.
Zbigniew Libera
Conjunctiva-Teasing Art
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Experiences

Conjunctiva-Teasing Art

Maria Ewa Łunkiewicz-Rogoyska (or simply Mewa) was one of Poland’s great post-war avant-garde artists, establishing a tradition of the apartment as artistic space along with Henryk Stażewski.
Zbigniew Libera
Van Gogh from Czortków
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Experiences

Van Gogh from Czortków

Even though he was deported from France and expelled from the Kraków Academy of Fine Arts, Leopold Lewicki’s artistic talent was nonetheless remarkable in all its grotesque glory.
Zbigniew Libera
I Held in My Hand Something Living
Art + Stories
Experiences

I Held in My Hand Something Living

The sculptor Maria Papa Rostkowska led a happy life. Maybe that’s why so few people remember who she was.
Zbigniew Libera