Galéria Ľudovíta Fullu, Ružomberok
Curators: Rashida Davison, Zuzana Hrušková
Globe Gallery are delighted to be working in collaboration with Gallery of Ľudovíta Fullu - SNG in Ružomberok, curating Paola Ciarska's first Slovakian show. Following a visit to Gallery of Ľudovíta Fullu in November 2017 Paola has documented individual rooms in the gallery, including the private spaces within the living quarters of L'udovít Fulla. Our supported artist, Paola Ciarska, has created paintings, illustrations and prints featuring an inventory of art works, furniture and personal items from the gallery.
Paola, the artist, graduated from Newcastle University in the Spring of 2016. Her family had moved to Newcastle upon Tyne in 2005. Hailing from Poland it's from there that she draws much of her influence for the graphic geometric backgrounds of her rich paintings. The finely detailed gouache rendered backdrops come from her strong and warm memories of the traditional brightly hued wallpaper designs whilst growing up. These visual statements add immensley to the aesthetic of her work; dissimilar and yet the draftsman like quality, the symmetry, draws them together.
There's much to see in her minute work, barely larger than postcards (Ikons for and of the new millennium), yet totally at home hung singly, thanks to so much detail - brightly lit rooms, a vibrance of not only colour, but buzzing with a cacophony of objects, creating sensations, making the viewers eye return again and again, experiencing more detail at each encounter. Alternatively, as you will experience at the exhibition, her creations work equally well together. A delight to the eye and mind.
Ciarska has succeeded in depicting intimate scenes as representative of 21st century life. Creating 'portraits' of personal spaces and yet, potentially, a mirror to the spectator. At this moment the voyeuristic, peering through a keyhole if you wish, comes into play and believe me there is a sense of play running through her work. Ciarska's deliberately humorous, voyeuristic portrayals bear comparison to the film "Honey I Shrunk The Kids", though on a far more sensual and cerebral level. You'll see a naked women occupying each of her miniature rooms. Paola's paintings are packed with the many 'trinkets' of modern life, the paintings evocative presence far exceeds their small scale (the sum of the whole), and viewers are encouraged to engage with each meticulously painted detail provided. The smallness of these pieces of art also reflect the present, not only in content, but that the objects around us are almost constantly being miniaturised. So here we not only experience the minutiae of life condensed into a room, but all the time viewing through the wrong end of a pair of binoculars. 'Gulliver's Travels' comes to mind. Paola's work describes the connections between the artist's identity, digital communication and social media, and the things we surround ourselves with that make us feel at home. They present a rich political narrative, connecting the independence and isolation of place and home within a technologically connected world.
Since graduating Paola has been invited to show at a number of international art fairs and exhibitions, most recently the Volta Basel Art Fair in June. Interest in her work is increasing at a remarkable pace, receiving significant private commissions, already having created a number of bespoke paintings in the short time since her graduation. Those who have purchased Paola's work, be it from her numerous showings, or as commissions, are an eclectic group, proving that these tiny paintings appeal to a broad spectrum.
Paola lives in Newcastle upon Tyne and has work in the city's Hatton Gallery collection.
Words: David Houghton
Curators: Rashida davison, Zuzana Hrušková
Exhibition in collaboration with the Globe Gallery, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Great Britain
https://www.artforum.com/picks/paola-ciarska-74058
https://candidmagazine.com/paola-ciarskas-czesc-pani-ciarska-pani-ciarska-imt-gallery-london/
https://candidmagazine.com/paola-ciarskas-czesc-pani-ciarska-pani-ciarska-imt-gallery-london/
https://www.artforum.com/picks/paola-ciarska-74058
Paola's recent exhibitions include: Cześć, Pani at IMT Gallery, London (2018); Coming Along Nicely , solo exhibitions at Globe Gallery and Gallagher & Turner, Newcastle (2017); Worried Mother , curated by MILK at Workplace Gallery, Gateshead (2016); Feeling Safer , curated by Mark Jackson at Brooklyn Fireproof, New York (2016); Curious? Festival at Bamburgh House, Newcastle (2016); and BRINK , Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead (2012).