Footage
For the media
The basis of Beata Czapska’s artistic activity is contemplation of nature, establishing close in-teractions with it. Her work often takes on an animalistic tone, and this coincides with the life attitude represented by the artist. For the Polish sculptor, who has long lived in Paris, fauna remains an inexhaustible source of thematic and aesthetic inspiration.
Limited Edition Gallery has decided to present, through the exhibition Pure Form, this part of Beata Czapska’s oeuvre, which consists of a rich, intense, long-term dialogue with nature. Almost every one of the twenty sculptures beckons with a magical aura and totemic charm – like frozen and seduced by a shamanic spell, the for-ms. The rounded shape of Czapska’s sculptures, their relatively small size and recognizable attention to detail also give her works a humorous aspect. However, it is definitely not La Fontaine’s wryness, but a warm gesture of reunion with the Earth and all its inhabitants – animals, plants and people.
Despite these clear representational preferences, Beata Czapska does not want to see sculpture as functional or decorative. Her artistic ambition is to strive for the title pure form, which the artist understands as the harmonious union of the chosen sculptural material with the character and essence of the model. Pureform also manifests itself in the creative act itself. Beata Czapska, in her own words, follows the material and listens carefully to it. The creative philosophy understood in this way – and leaving the decorative attributes of sculpture aside – is to move the viewer and arouse his emotions.
Avoidance of definitive movements, openness to the silent suggestions of the material, complete trust in the essence of the model – this is Pure Form at its purest. The exhibition is supplemented by sketches, equally important within the framework of the artistic formula Beata Czapska has been working out for years, which the sculptor sums up with the words: “Every artist has his own way, and apparently mine is to show what is good and beautiful in animal beings.”
The exhibition will feature:
- Photographs of Beata Czapska’s sculpture with curator’s commentary;
- Previously unpublished materials (artist’s comments, interviews);
- Audiovisual materials featuring the artist;
- Critical text
CURATOR, WIESLAWA WIDERYNSKA, ON THE WORK OF BEATA CZAPSKA
Beata Czapska’s youth, the daughter of pre-war intelligentsia, during the years of deep communist Poland. Values brought from the family home did not always correlate with the existing reality. After graduation, she emigrated to Paris, perceived in Poland as the capital of European culture. Beata Czapska, although educated as an architect, constantly sought optimal expression in artistic design and industrial design. To her credit she has numerous posters, chairs, lamps and interior designs. In the 1980s she met René Coutelle, a dedicated educator, great erudite and good sculptor, in whose studio she discovered a new medium for herself – sculpture. From then on, it was stone, an extremely demanding material, that became the most important means of artistic expression for Czapska. The sculptor perfectly understands its matter – she works, forging directly in the material (taille directe). From marble, granite or basalt she is able to bring out depth, color and richness of texture, as well as emphasize the movement of the portrayed animal. She is very clearly interested in the relationship between man and nature.She loves animals and treats them with tenderness, while often attributing to them human characteristics. Among other things, it is in this way of representation that the idea of the universality of art is contained.
Wieslawa Widerynska