Drzewostan (Tree Stand) / solo exhibition

Drzewostan (Tree Stand) is an exhibition inspired by trees seen through the perspective of traditional culture. Plant motifs, present in folk songs, rarely refer exclusively to nature—they usually become a metaphor for human emotions and passions. Trees and plants lead the audience deep into the world of feelings, telling stories of love and desire, but also of violence and suffering. Listening to songs about apple trees, sycamores, or oaks, one can find stories that are both beautiful and dark.
In my project, I referred to these narratives, touching on universal themes told through plant symbols. The Galeria -m- space presented installations, video works, and performances, creating a polyphonic reflection on the place of nature in emotional and cultural memory.

The project was co-financed by a grant from the Marshal of the Opole Voivodeship “Marshal’s Talents.”

At the exhibition, I presented the following works:
Song of the Enchanted Girl Installation and performance 12 ceramic bells, a branch, beads, video
The installation and performance were inspired by a traditional song by Maria Rogosz from the Silesia region. The song tells the story of three young men who break the spell on an enchanted girl while cutting down a sycamore tree. It turns out that she was cursed by her mother when she was in recovery after childbirth. The girl asks the woodcutters to take her back to her mother. When her mother sees her, she cries loudly, to which her daughter replies, “Don’t cry, mother, sell everything and give me a funeral.” The song ends with the verse, “Ring the bells for me, on three, four sides.” In my work, each ceramic bell illustrates one of the verses of the song.

Hey, in my little garden…
The installation consisted of a bed covered with grass and a hand-embroidered pillow from which a sound emanated. The installation was inspired by a lyrical Silesian love song.

Green oaks were burning
The work was created during the summer solstice – a time traditionally dedicated to the elements of water and fire. The locations where the photos were taken on long, hot days were the banks of the Oder River and the vicinity of Jedlic on Lake Turawskie – the site of a former, overgrown oak alley. In the vicinity of the reservoir, in the forest, you can still find remnants of the former infrastructure built before the reservoir was constructed in the late 1930s. The avenue must have once led to one of the four villages, the ruins of which now lie at the bottom of the lake. In the projection, we see how the shadow dancing on the tree trunk and the silhouette of a naked woman pouring water from a jug intertwine. The performer’s position refers to classical nudes in painting. It was inspired by the Midsummer song Paliły się zielone dęby (The green oaks were burning), in which burning oaks can symbolize masculine energy and unquenchable desire.
The photographs were taken by Tomasz Stempski, with editing and sound by Maria Bitka.
A complementary work is a video created in February 2024 during a residency at Milford House in Live Art Ireland. I was lying in a window frame and building a structure out of branches on my chest, resembling a nest or a pile, while a butterfly, awakened by the warmth, was walking around the window frame. The work is accompanied by the sound of the first spring bonfire I recorded. The work still hasn’t been titled.