Works presented at the exhibition were created during Warsaw Multicultural Plein-Air project taking place in autumn 2009. Twenty artists, representing various cultures and living now in Warsaw, created works focused on the city as the main topic. The exhibition will be open from 5th until 28th December in the spaces of Pasaż Italia in the backyard of Nowy Świat Street.
WARSAW
Warsaw seems to be a city of extremely divergent opinions – as to its atmosphere, citizens, architectural image, general arrangement of the space and its spatial development. Many of the big cities, especially capitals, are stereotypically labelled (rightly or wrongly) in terms which are helpful - both for tourists visiting them as well as for their citizens - in referring themselves to their cities. Paris as a capital of fashion, New York – the city of avant-garde and individualists, Tokyo – the city of workaholics...
And Warsaw? It is hard to point a commonly entrenched, quick association. Although the opinion of an ugly city could be such a one. However, the problem is that the aesthetics is a very relative issue and while a part of the citizens and tourists states the city is ugly and boring, the other part may disagree having a contrary opinion. The number and variety of the opinions were one of the impulses to create an artistic project that could reflect the diversity – twenty visual artists talk about Warsaw as a place where they live and create, that involves their emotions and experiences, and that they face as an 'outer' person – representing various cultures that they are related to.

PLEIN-AIR
Hardly any artistic plein-air project takes place in an urban space. City's noise, rush or chaos may be hurdles in artistic work. Besides, the topic of the city – though it seems to be a current one – when is placed in the context of the plein-air – may be found quite a stiff one, being associated with the necessity of presenting architecture. In this case, the topic of the city and work in the plein-air is treated very individually – artists, having an absolute freedom as to the interpretation, may even totally omit the topic of the architecture of Warsaw. The city is also its people and relations between them, scents, sounds, emotions, various types of experiences, rumours, urban legends.

MULTICULTURAL
Artists, representing various cultures, may add up to their works another dimension. A culture may have an influence on an individual perception of a concrete space although the influence may be left unrecognised. A confrontation with a different, especially an obviously different culture, may re-evaluate what is common and what is amazing or worth attention. What may be an interpretation key for choosing specific objects or events as topics of works could be a culture. And the viewer may build another interpretation level using another key that may be a culture (or cultures) which the viewer is immersed in.


Artists participating in the project:
* Orwa Abu Turabe (Syria): painting
* Tinatin Botchorishvili (Georgia): photography
* Aleksander Chochlow (Russia): painting/ author's technique
* Minh Dam (Vietnam): painting/ photography
* Loi Hong Diep (Vietnam): painting
* Linas Domarackas (Lithuania): painting
* Lourdes Estrada (Mexico): painting
* Benoit le Gros (Togo): photography
* Iryna Harasym (Ukraine): painting
* Tobia Taddele Gebre Hiwot (Ethiopia): painting
* Razvi Hussaini (India): painting
* Gamid Ibadullayev (Azerbaijan): photography/ author's technique
* America Martin (Mexico/USA): photography
* Ivo Nikić (Serbia/Poland): painting/ author's technique
* Lude Reno (French Martinique): video
* Katia Sokołowa-Zyzak (Russia): painting
* Mania Zyzak (Russia): photography

The project itself was born within the framework of activities undertaken by Continent Warsaw – Warsaw of Many Cultures portal (Kontynent Warszawa – Warszawa Wielu Kultur) which aims to promote multiculturalism in the capital city by cultural and artistic projects.

PASAŻ ITALIA
the space of the former ZAR Gallery
21 Nowy Świat St, in the backyard

Contact details:
tel. 022 374 33 22
mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

www.kontynent.waw.pl/plener

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The event is realised within the framework of 'The Pilot Project of Warsaw Multicultural Centre', co-financed by Implementing Authority for European Projects, the state budget and Warsaw Office for Culture.