PLAYING WITH CONTEXT

is an event that combines art and design interventions within the urban environment with an exciting programme of talks, film screenings and debates exploring topics such as: architecture, public art and local communities. This year we shifted our focus from downtown urban spaces to residential areas, namely the Wzgórze Świętego Maksymiliana district.

The installation is directly inspired by Salcia Hałas’s short story — “The Fog” that was commissioned for the purpose of the Biennale as a starting point for the invited artists. The abstract, metalwork sculpture will become a part of a pocket park (currently in construction) in the Wzgórze district. Artist: Cekas.

Stolemka is a metal sculpture inspired by Kashubian lore, depicting an enormous woman. The openwork form of Stolemka allows her to blend into the environment which fills the sculpture’s contours. Its shape is inspired by old school playground equipment. Artist: Stach Szumski, other illustrators: Małgorzata Gurowska, Malwina Konopacka, Waldemar ST.

The task is to come up with an idea for an object or an assortment of objects. It can be one form or a composition made of elements differing in function and size. The project is a testing ground for collaborative efforts of artists and architects. The aim is to create an object in public space that will be available to children as a plaything, but at the same time has an aesthetic that can be appreciated by adults from varied backgrounds.

Using the concept of play as a framework, we were investigating urban features and observing how people interact with different elements of the cityscape. We realized that a good old carpet hanger is an ideal, playful “backyard formation”. It can be perceived as a geometric, simplified sculpture that can function as an urban plaything or a part of callisthenic gym equipment.

is a light installation that, via its form, refers to triumphal arcs and city gates — constructions that manifested strength, brought communities together and guarded the citizens. Historically, in times of war, uncertainty and autocratic rule, architecture would shift to easily understandable and unambiguous classical forms. A stone arch — one of the most substantial structures found in architecture — holds a magnitude of connotations and interpretations. In this context the light arc is an oxymoron — a communal notion that all of us endorse as a way of searching for meaning and certainty in an uncertain world.

To respond to the need of creating a landmark for the Wzgórze Świętego Maksymiliana District, the artists pitched an idea to include an abbreviated name of the district used by the locals — WZG.

The objective of this project was to create a small, secure housing estate for important residents — birds. Birdhouses that can serve, amongst others, as house sparrow’s nesting places were incorporated into a mural depicting a snag tree. The piece brings together art, sustainability and education. Artist: Małgorzata Gurowska.

In the last decades small birds in urban environments have found themselves in serious predicament. Their dwellings have been destroyed in the process of thermal modernization. The amount of insects, their main source of food, dropped. Bushes and trees have been cut, while a growing population of cats poses a great danger to them.

From the beginning of the project we consulted it with ornithologists to ensure safety and easy access to food for birds. That is how we decided not to include the little stick, an element broadly used in many birdhouse designs that in reality provides an opportunity for predators. We set on a birdhouse design that can host, amongst many other species, house sparrows that reside in Poland even during winter months. The mural is situated on an elementary school, so the students can observe the birds all throughout the year as part of their curriculum. The top rows, due to sun exposure, will remain vacant and serve as a replacement to the occupied birdhouses at the bottom of the mural.

The project consists of an array of design interventions aiming to unify one, characteristic street’s appearance. Closely working with the residents, Traffic Design’s team has created new facade colour designs and ornamental metalwork, such as fences and house numbers. Artists: Traffic Design Studio: Eugenia Tynna, Paweł Pączek Wiśniewski, Jacek Wielebski, Renia Maj.

Since the mid-war period houses on Focha Lane have been redecorated many times. Past and present residents added their own fences, house numbers, entry roofs, lamps, stucco work, window joinery and even whole new windows. The mingle-mangle of architectural detail, colour and metalwork resulted in a chaotic bit of cityscape. Traffic Design Studio’s aim was to create a visual line for the street, to introduce some coherence, but not to cast away every resident’s individuality. We set out to create an aesthetic that could be translated into different media, totaling in a mosaic of congeneric shapes. We were looking for visual identity that would not be based solely on unification.

During the consultations, the residents disagreed with the idea that involved painting large-scale, geometric murals on the facades. Instead, they wanted to see the visual style of the street become more unified. In response, Traffic Design Studio prepared a consistent colour set for the facades, focusing on fence and house number design instead, thus making the metalwork the most eye-catching element of the street’s visual style.