Pola Salicka

Years of working in collectives, groups and artistic duos have taught me an enormous amount, yet in a way they have also made me ‘dependent’ on the security of shared responsibility, group support and a sense of purpose (because if several people say it makes sense, then clearly it does). I would like the residency to support me in initiating my own projects, independent of current group projects, which require a completely different kind of commitment. Figuring out what I, as an independent artist, can contribute to collaborative work requires space and reflection. I hope this will also lead me to learn how to better manage my commitment to both individual and group work.

I intend to focus on experiments with wild plants, with an emphasis on those associated with the local aquatic environment. From gathering them to shaping them. This is a time for spontaneous, manual activities (dyeing, sewing, weaving, documenting, etc.) that are not geared towards a pre-planned end result, but depend on the cycle of nature and the outcome of successive attempts. In my work with plants, I respect their agency – they tell stories, act as connectors, and provide a sense of being rooted in the world and of belonging. I see the development of a regular personal practice as a tool that supports me in functioning within a city that provides constant stimuli, strengthening my mental resilience and, hopefully, my economic one as well.

I am a designer and artist; my work is situated somewhere between marshes, gardens, bushes, the city’s outskirts and its centre. For years, I have been working collectively at the intersection of art, ecology and climate activism: within the Spółdzielnia KRZAK cooperative (2016-2020), a garden/meeting place in Jazdów, and currently as part of the ZAKOLE group (from 2020) focused on artistic, advocacy and educational activities centred on the wetland at Zakole Wawerskie in Warsaw. I am committed to building community-building practices and spaces that raise our awareness of interspecies relationships and mindful coexistence with others. I create situations, installations, workshops, publications, objects and other forms, often through collaboration and alliances.

I have collaborated with the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw, the Ujazdowski Castle Centre for Contemporary Art, Jasna 10 Społeczna Instytucja Kultury Krytyki Politycznej, Haus der Kulturen der Welt Berlin, Floating University Berlin, Robida Collective, Osiedle Jazdów, ‘Słonecznik’ Solidarity Cultural Centre, Kuchnia Konfliktu, MAO Ljubljana, Jan van Eyck Academie, Unsound/Ephemera and others.