Cristina Ferreira-Szwarc, Ĺšwietlica, 2021. Exhibition view KVOST, Berlin. Photo by Bernd Borchardt
Świetlica is a special place, it’s an odd hybrid because it can be a shimmering childhood memory, a waiting room, or an escape from boredom (...).
Cristina Ferreira-Szwarc, Ĺšwietlica, 2021. Exhibition view KVOST, Berlin. Photo by Bernd Borchardt
For Cristina Ferreira-Szwarc,
Świetlica is a space to talk about emigration, heritage and belonging. The artist’s exhibition at KVOST gallery marks the culmination of an interview-based research process, conducted with members of the Polish community living in Berlin. The voices from these interviews meet and clash, dancing to a timeless tune while caught in between individual stories and historical narration, memory and fiction.
Ĺšwietlica materialises in the gallery space, echoing these voices from its walls and asking: What is a community and what are its meeting grounds? What was yesterday, is today and will be tomorrow? Where does one go from here, and with whom?
· From the press release: Cristina Ferreira-Szwarc, Świetlica, KVOST, Berlin
September 16 — November 13, 2021
Curated by Wera Bet
More
CRISTINA FERREIRA-SZWARC is the winner of the KVOST scholarship 2020. The jury consisted of artists Asta Gröting and Agnieszka Polska, as well as the curatorial team Nathalie Hoyos & Rainald Schumacher, who specialise in Eastern and Southeastern Europe, and the founding board members of the Kunstverein Ost, Julia Rust and Stephan Koal.
With their choice, the jury recognised the European, integrative orientation and the communal perspective of their project Ĺšwietlica (common room). Ferreira-Szwarc, who has lived in Poland since 2013, turns her gaze back to the everyday life of Polish immigrants who live in Berlin.
The artist-in-residence program in 2020 Berlin was canceled. Instead, the project received financial and organisational support from KVOST for a period of one year. The results of the scholarship will be presented at Berlin Art Week 2021.
© 2021, GUEST ROOMS & CRISTINA FERREIRA-SZWARC
