Wspólny splot

"The Common Weave. Beginnings of the Polish school of Textile Art"
Opening: December 9, 2023
Exhibition: December 10, 2023 - February 29, 2024
Curator: Marika Kuźmicz
Collaboration: Barbara Orłowska, Adam Parol
Display, visual identification: Łukasz Izert

Arton Foundation, Foksal 11/4

The exhibition presents works by: Magdalena Abakanowicz, Jolanta Owidzka, Eleonora Plutyńska, Wojciech Sadley and Anna Sledziewska from the collection of the Central Museum of Textiles in Łódź.

"Despite the different individualities of various artists, clearly different systems of thinking, seeing and understanding the phenomena around us, Polish authors at that time presented a unified style, which can be called the Polish Textile Art School."

Jolanta Owidzka

The phenomenon referred to as the "Polish School of Textile Art," which manifested itself through a group of mostly women artists in the 1960s, in fact had its origins much earlier.
The founding moment of this chapter of Polish and world art is considered to be the 1st International Biennale of Textiles in Lausanne (1962). This event had the character of a downright revolutionary manifestation (this is how the show of the Polish representation at the Biennale was described by the international press), but in fact the process of its formation was long, complex and connected with the environment of the Warsaw School of Fine Arts, and then the local Academy of Fine Arts.
The co-creators of this trend, who participated in the most important international exhibitions of textiles, achieving spectacular successes (including Magdalena Abakanowicz, Jolanta Owidzka, Ada Kierzkowska and Wojciech Sadley) had a common history, connected with the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts. These joint studies took place with the participation of prominent pedagogues, most notably Eleonora Plutyńska, Anna Śledziewska and Mieczysław Szymański, who began their creative and pedagogical work back in the interwar period.

Each of them explored the medium of textiles in their own way, while relating to the weaving technique and its history with respect and attention. They then passed on the practical and theoretical knowledge they gained to the next generation of artists. Thus began the history of the Polish school of textiles.
This is a remarkable example of intergenerational continuity, a tradition that is creatively developed from decade to decade, despite historical breakthroughs and upheavals. What's more, the history initiated at the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts is continuing. In recent years, one can see a growing renewed interest in the medium of textiles and the history of pedagogy in this area, exemplified by, among others, the work of Eliza Proszczuk, who works with the legacy of Eleonora Plutyńska as part of her own artistic activity.

By juxtaposing textiles by the first female professors and representatives of the Polish School of Textile Art with materials documenting teaching activities at the Academy, we highlight the fact of intergenerational connectivity in this area.
The exhibition "Common Weave..." inaugurates the Arton Foundation's research on the history of textiles at the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts. In 2024, the exhibitions we have prepared will present the achievements of forgotten or hitherto unrecognized representatives of this medium.

The exhibition is accompanied by a program of workshops and educational meetings.

Subsidized by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage from the Fund for Promotion of Culture
Co-financed by the City of Warsaw