The Centre for Contemporary Art in Toruń is hosting an exhibition entitled ‘New Expression’, presenting the work of Polish artists from the independent art scene of the 1980s. The works on show include some of the classics of this trend, but there are also paintings, drawings and installations that are almost completely unknown, as they are presented for the first time in forty years, pulled out of attics and cellars by artists. This is quite a treat for collectors and lovers of contemporary art.
The phenomenon called “New Expression” developed in Poland from the very beginning of the 1980s – from the birth of Solidarity and during martial law. It reached its peak in 1986-87 and by 1989 had virtually burnt itself out. “New Expression” was an equal and parallel faction of the trans-avant-garde (referred to in Italy as Arte cifra or La Transavanguardia, in Germany as Neue Wilde, in France as Figuration libre, in the USA as New Image Painting), celebrating commercial success around the world in the 1980s.
Unfortunately, Polish ‘wild’ painters could not function internationally due to the country’s isolation during martial law. In addition, as a result of the boycott of state exhibition halls announced by the independent artists’ community, the youngsters voluntarily cut themselves off from the wider national public. They did not show their work more widely until the second half of the decade, hence the frequent accusations of being derivative of Western tendencies made by party publicists.
The exhibition at Toruń’s Centre for Contemporary Art features the earliest works, precursors to the development of the New Expression: the diploma paintings of Jarosław Modzelewski from 1979-80, the early canvases of Ryszard Grzyb from before 1980 and the works of Włodzimierz Pawlak from 1982. Most of the works on display, however, date from 1984-92.
On an area of 3,000 m2, we can admire the most characteristic ‘wild’ paintings, drawings, sculptures and installations, but also videos and films, photographs and documents from the era.
Arkadiusz Słomczyński