Travels are an important part of my private and professional life and they are a very important source of inspiration for my graphic work. I like to observe and experience new spaces, new architecture, new cities. Their constant, dynamic motion, their diverse architecture, are what attracts me to big cities, such as Buenos Aires, Rome, Warsaw or Łódź- my home town.

From many photos taken directly, later I make several charcoal sketches, which in turn become projects for my prints. I use etching, painterly hand-dusted aquatint and salt aquatint to obtain deeply etched grained structures which add another dimension to the image. Light and shade are the main themes of my prints. The predominant inspiration is urban architecture. For me the city is joyful, full of light, movement and energy. In my graphics I transform this impression into the dynamic space which is ordered by light. Although in my images I use selected perspectives to build the construction of space, it is accompanied by shade and light. Once it is the quiet dispersed light of the day, another time they are almost baroque, dramatic shade-and-light contrasts, or nocturne interiors saturated with black.

My works show contrast between majestic fragments of architecture, lasting still in space, and the element of movement suggested by circulation areas, roads, passages, crossed suspension bridges. I am interested in the concept of simultaneity of states of the soul described by Boccioni and the role of recollection in the image creation.

ABOUT THE BUENOS AIRES SERIES @ FIG BILBAO 2020

The prints presented in Bilbao were inspired with the architecture of Buenos Aires where in in 2019 I was visiting the unique Proyecto Ace Foundation. I was impressed with the monumental architecture of the city and particularly that of the historical shopping centre Galerias Pacifico. My prints show distorted perspective, combining different vintage points into one view- reflecting in a way the feeling of being overwhelmed by the glittering, dynamic spaces of the multi-floor building.

The prints were created in February and March 2020, when the world was starting the struggle with the pandemic and more and more countries were introducing national lockdowns. In Poland, as in Argentina, Spain and many other corners of the world, all shopping malls were closed and empty for a long time. In a way, my prints anticipate this vision of depopulated centers, which normally are flooded with people. For me, the common spaces where people can meet and socialize, even only while shopping, are sources of positive energy. This positive attitude is expressed with rhythms of lights and shades and rich textures of the salt aquatint technique combined with deep etching.

The participation in the prestigious Bilbao Festival is a great honor for me and a wonderful opportunity to share my impressions with wide audience, and also show solidarity in the difficult times we are all facing.