solo exhibition ‘My Problem Is a Problem of a Woman’
The title of the exhibition My Problem is a Problem of Woman refers to the performance realised by Ewa Partum’s in Łódź in 1979, during which the artist clearly opted for art understood as a tool of feminist struggle.
The individual exhibition of Ewa Partum demonstrates how over the decades the artist has redefined the problem of feminist art by developing artistic strategies of resistance and the project of emancipation in changing socio-political conditions. On the other hand, the aim of the exhibition is to show the ways in which Partum’s work is present in contemporary public sphere and artistic discourses. It also aims to present the latest work of Ewa Partum, involved in contemporary women’s struggle, and international and intergenerational feminist solidarity.
The presented works introduced viewers to the several stages and decades of feminist struggle as part of the artistic biography of Ewa Partum. From the politics of personal as political and works that engaged and educated the public in the 1970s on emancipation issues, through performances from the 1980s in which the artist dealt with the problem of the position of a women in the so-called high culture and public discourse, to contemporary works, in which the aesthetic of resistance is combined with the manifestation of feminist solidarity.
The aim of the exhibition was not only to familiarise viewers with the work of Ewa Partum, but also to reflect on art as a tool of resistance and protest. Workshop and a meeting with the artist will be an important part of the exhibition.
The exhibition is accompanied by a presentation of contemporary works by younger generation artists, Kami Mierzwińska, Aleksandr* Demianiuk and Weronika Perlowska, who deal with current gender politics in Poland from a feminist and queer perspective. The selected works were submitted to the recent open call organised in November 2021 as part of the Ewa Partum exhibition at the Fabryka Sztuki in Łódź .
Ewa Partum is a pioneering Polish conceptual and performance artist, recognised as a trailblazer of feminist art and body art in Poland. Her work, which began in the late 1960s, is known for its critical stance on social and political issues, often using her own naked body as a form of protest against the objectification of women and for equal rights for female artists. Partum’s work has gone on to be exhibited worldwide and included in collections such as Tate, London and MoMA, New York
Curated by Karolina Majewska-Güde
Dates: April –May 2022
Opening: 01.04. 22
Workshop during the day 02.04.22
Opera screening in the evening 02.04.22
Supported by Arts Council England