The exhibition ‘Journey to the Universe’, presenting the extremely popular and highly valued works of Jan Dobkowski, who celebrates his 80th birthday this year, will be held at the DESA Unicum headquarters in Warsaw until 24 August.

Its phenomenon continues to inspire and is an excellent source of knowledge on the transfer of world art trends to the native country. The artist, without whom it is difficult to imagine Polish pop art, became most famous for his Red and Green series.

The exhibition opens with the painting “Double Girl”, which was purchased by New York’s Guggenheim Museum in 1968, confirming the Polish avant-gardist’s international fame.

Fans of contemporary art will also be able to see paintings from Dobkowski’s other key painting series: “Beyond Infinity”, “Pamukale”, “Himalaya”, “Australian Dream” or “Ocean”.

Jan Dobkowski, one of the most original personalities in Polish contemporary art, is a careful observer and enthusiast of life. Without his bold colour combinations, reproduction of forms and erotic themes, there would certainly be no Polish variety of pop art. Born 80 years ago, the artist is an innovator on a worldwide level, as proven by his successes at both the São Paulo and the New York Biennales. “To this day, he is considered a pioneer whose work is a fascinating reflection of the visual culture of the hippies”, says Anna Szary, coordinator of the exhibition.

There has never been such a large and cross-sectional exhibition of Jan Dobkowski’s works before. DESA Unicum will present almost thirty paintings from the artist’s most important series of paintings, which is an excellent opportunity to take a look at his inspirations and the directions he still follows in his explorations.

Jan Dobkowski is the recipient of many prestigious awards, including the Cyprian Kamil Norwid Critic’s Award and the Jan Cybis Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2012, the artist was awarded the Silver Medal for ‘Merit to Culture Gloria Artis’.

Adrian Andrzejewski