Polish-Belarusian artist Jana Shostak presents her film, ‘The Migrating Child’ (2026) with Piotr Adamski in our current exhibition, ‘The Space Between’ ending 25th July 2026 at Centrala.
What happens when research becomes music? In ‘The Migrating Child’, artist and composer JP1 transforms stories of migration into a quietly powerful nano-opera, where whispered voices, bass guitar, and choral harmonies come together in an intimate exploration of displacement, memory, and connection.
Working at the intersection of music and performance, JP1 creates minimal yet emotionally resonant compositions in which sound becomes a gesture of care and relation. Inspired by Charles Darwin’s idea that music evolved from birdsong as a form of attraction, The Migrating Child imagines music as an echo of an original love song—a call shaped by desire, closeness, and response.
The work is performed in collaboration with Babula (Hanna Kanavalava), her three grandchildren, and the women’s choir Palina Dobrowolskaya, Carolina Poliakowa, and Rusia Shuma. Together, they bring personal histories to the performance; all are political refugees from Belarus. Their voices transform the work into a moving reflection on migration, resilience, and the enduring power of collective memory.
About Jana Shostak:
Jana Shostak (born 1994 in Grodno, Belarus) is an artist who has become an activist since 2020. She currently lives and works in Warsaw. Shostak is a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków and the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw as well as a PhD student at the University of Arts in Poznań. She is a finalist of the Biennial of Young Art “Rybie Oko”, a laureate of the Grand Prix of the Młode Wilki ’16 competition and the first place at the IN OUT Festival. The Belarusian artist has participated in many exhibitions, e.g. at Manifesta 11 in Zurich; WRO 2017 Biennale: Draft Systems in Wrocław; The Wall, Trafostacja Sztuki in Szczecin; Communis – Renegotiating Community at Galeria Labirynt in Lublin; as well as Not-Aufnahme, 48 Stunden Neukölln in Berlin. Since 2016, she has consciously used mass media as a platform to disseminate her art/activism. Every day at 18:00 (until the end of the revolution and one day longer) she co-creates the temporary memorial “1 Minute Scream” for Belarus.