Artwork
「Breakfast on the grass (from the series ‘Domestic workers committee’)」 2021 video [11:37]
「Where is the monument of the housemaid? (from the series ‘Domestic workers committee’)」 2021 photo
「I dreamt of Europa」 2022 crown, video [5:00]
「Russian flag (from the series ‘Faded flag’)」 2019 flag
「Crisis Kiosk」 2023 Mixed Media – “Sunflower” Solidary Community Center (Yulia Krivich, Taras Gembik), Marta Romankiv
Concept
「Breakfast on the grass (from the series ‘Domestic workers committee’)」
The video is a documentation of one of the meetings of a group of caregivers of the elderly formed on the initiative of Marta Romankiv. It notes the constant effort made by the caregivers. In opposition to their difficult reality—physically and mentally exhausting work, 24-hour days, lack of days off—the artist invited the participants of the meeting to focus on rest and dreams.
photos: Lukasz Surowiec
Participants:
Olga Bedlinska, Lidia Bolemchuk, Nadia Dubanych, Galyna Fedorychak, Galyna Goi, Olha Haponiuk, Natalia Hladysh, Oksana Horlenko, Tania Yavir, Alla Nadashkevich, Anna Omelianska, Ruslana Poberezhnyk, Nadia Shapowal, Maria Shvorak, Tetyana Smolyar, Lubov Zhuk.
「Where is the monument of the housemaid? (from the series ‘Domestic workers committee’)」
On International Workers’ Day on 1 May 2022, representatives of the Workers’ and Domestic Workers’ Commission came out to the square at the Mickiewicz Monument in Kraków, highlighting the need to commemorate the history of servants. In the pre-war period, 30 percent of the working population of the largest Polish cities were servants. Thanks to the work they did, the upper classes were able to focus on art, literature and architecture, creating the current image of the city as a capital of culture. These women worked under extremely difficult conditions, performing hard physical labour for minimal pay, which was barely enough for a modest survival. For their work, they often sacrificed their entire lives and gave up starting families.
“As domestic workers, we are one of the most invisible and least protected social groups in contemporary Poland. We believe that we cannot fight for a real improvement in our working conditions without commemorating the displaced history of servants.” – write the domestic workers in a letter to the Mayor of Krakow.
Photo documentation: Mateusz Lipiński
「I dreamt of Europa」
The on-camera performance refers to the dream of an equal, strong and united Europe. The text used for the video work are excerpts from Ukrainian articles. They are sentences that define Ukraine’s current definitions of Europe and Europeanness.
As part of the Eurasian continent, Europe has clear borders in the west, north, and south, but the eastern border is imprecise and fluid. Europe functions as a mental construct rather than a geographical or social entity, in the case of countries defined as Eastern Europe, often becoming synonymous with a desirable future—synonymous with another ‘better world’.
「Russian flag (from the series ‘Faded flag’)」
The “Faded Flags” project is an attempt to imagine the future in which the concept of nationalism—though recognized today as inevitable—loses its importance and becomes only an historical element. Flags of Russia were sewn from bleached fabrics. The fabrics were originally white, red, and blue.
Getting rid of the national colors, I wonder about the possible shape of a “better future,” in which there are no predefined markings that would allow you to easily identify the enemy. Action is a form of manifestation, and concerns the possibility of creating a community whose foundation will be based on openness and equality—not on the idea of nationality
https://contemporarylynx.co.uk/portfolio-marta-romankiv
「Crisis Kiosk」- “Sunflower” Solidary Community Center (Yulia Krivich, Taras Gembik), Marta Romankiv
Crisis Kiosk is a reaction to the war that has been going on in Europe since 24 February 2022, as well as the global economic crisis. Times of crisis often allow us to see the importance of mutual support and grassroots – how much pieces of bread can be distributed while waiting for top-down help and systemic solutions. We want you to divide and share your survival recipes with us, too. You can contribute by writing down intergenerational stories on the steps of the Encouragement around food, community, and the often considerable creativity involved in survival.
We focus on the theme of solidarity, as well as the social and political changes brought about by the criminal Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the stories of both dependency and support that come from a colonised land connected by veins to the local inhabitants, but also to the rest of the world. Ukraine’s territory is renowned for its fertile soil and food resources, and the war in its territories is also a struggle for these
Profile
Born in 1995 in Lviv (Ukraine). Graduated from Ceramics Art at the Lviv State Institute of Decorative and Applied Arts. She earned her bachelor’s degree at the Pedagogical University in Krakow, majoring in Art and Media. She completed her MA studies at the Academy of Art in Szczecin. She is an interdisciplinary artist. She focuses her work mainly on the subject of social exclusion, especially nationality, citizenship and the related social inequalities, identity and legal problems. Her projects are usually participatory in nature, and are situated on the borderline between the spheres of social activism, science and art. The artist has been living and working in Poland since 2015.
Exhibition
Venue