The title of the exhibition "I DON’T WANT TO LOSE HER" refers to that moment when we meet someone and create an idealized but not necessarily existing image of her (or him). As we start getting to know her, we realize that she is actually different. And our initial impression, that picture of our own imagination fades away. Yet it is up to us whether that "artwork" we created in the first place will remain or be replaced by some new reality.
The exhibition of and by Agnieszka Pestka refers to that process of creating at times if not often somehow illusory or even surreal images of people. "There is something beautiful and naive about it", says the artist.
The exhibition is divided into two parts.
The first piece consists of bas-reliefs - etching matrices created using zinc plates and acid, presented horizontally on three platforms.
The central platform contains a set of six works (e.g., "I left to look for you", "Let me love things in you that don't exist"). Their arrangement is changed during the exhibition depending on the intention. Each work tells its own unspoken story. Yet when combined into a whole, they acquire a further meaning: they speak of different ways how to perceive women, which might be delicacy and strength, independence and energy.
The platforms located on the sides feature two sets of personal works in an unchanging arrangement ("She comes to Me at night (and takes Me in Her arms)" and "Broken"). They refer to the situation that the artist had to face - partial loss of sight and rising from illness.
The second part of the exhibition includes sculptures suspended in the space, made of stainless steel. The glitter of polished metal and its sharp edges show the tensions and contrasts raging within us, the people. The presented forms reflect the inner strength and character of the artist, at the same time reflecting her fascination with the material.
Media patronage of the exhibition:
