Photo Credits: Joeri Bosma
Artwork
「upior」
year: 2022
material: video, colour, sound [16:33]
– in collaboration with Taras Gembik
Concept
Upiór” (“Phantom”) which was produced in collaboration with the Ukrainian performer Taras Gembik.
This fantastic story, with its dark atmosphere harking back to the tradition of German Expressionist cinema, guides the viewer through the meanders of intertwined histories: the revindication of Orthodox religious buildings, forced conversions to Roman Catholicism, the revolt of Ukrainian peasant women, and Poland’s attempts to acquire overseas colonies. The figure of Upiór (Phantom) serves as a medium that allows us to penetrate the latent reality. In the symbolic layer of the film, the artist points to the figure of an exile deprived of his home and the possibility to tell his story – the Orthodox church inhabited by Upiór is to be demolished.
In order to discuss the decolonisation of Ukraine today, it is necessary to look again at our own entanglement in colonial processes. If memory is a condition for peace, then myths and historical simplifications must be abandoned.
Profile
Born in 1989, graduated the Academy of Fine Arts Warsaw (PL) in the Studio of Spatial Activities, followed by a scholarship at Universität der Künste Berlin (DE), and studied as well at Kunstakademie Münster (DE). He is also a resident artist at Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten in Amsterdam (NL). He works in video, paintings and ceramics, often including performative actions as well. He frequently collaborates with German artist Nicholas Grafia. His most recent exhibitions include shows at Haus der Kulturen der Welt (Berlin), MUDAM (Luxembourg), Museum of Modern Art (Warsaw), Museum Ludwig (Cologne). In his work, Sobczak is focused on political issues and historical policy. Emphasizing the perspective and life of marginalized subjects, he builds narratives, and tracks down the reasons for current global and social issues.
Exhibition
Venue