Dziwne jest ten świat

(The world is strange) It ain’t over until it’s over #1
Ostromecko, Poland 2020
Oko nigdy nie spi art festival, Ostromecko Palace
Invited by Fundacija Czarny Karzeł, Grzegorz Pleszynski and Beata Opic
Duration: 22 minutes
Photographs by Monika Deimling

Context:

The Polish Art Association Czarny Karzeł organises the annual art festival “Oko nigdy nie śpi” (The Eye Never Sleeps), bringing together exhibitions, performances, concerts, and art talks with Polish and international artists. Each edition takes place in a different location around Bydgoszcz, creating unique artistic encounters shaped by the chosen site.

In 2020, the festival was hosted at the Ostromecko Palace, a historic residence known for its elegant Baroque and Neoclassical architecture. The palace is surrounded by a vast and beautifully landscaped park, featuring terraced gardens, old-growth trees, and scenic viewpoints. As a significant cultural site, Ostromecko Palace has long been a centre for artistic and intellectual exchange, making it an ideal setting for the festival.

To reach this remarkable and secluded location, a bus shuttle transported the audience from Bydgoszcz.

The performance took place on the expansive lawn behind the palace, with the audience seated on the grand stone staircase leading from the palace into the park. From this elevated perspective, they had a clear view of the performance, framed by the stunning natural surroundings.

Description of actions:
A collage of performance images and sounds is created by executing the following actions with selected material.

On the lawn, near the audience, there are four wooden ladders, each with a white shirt hanging on them.

– Sitting far away from the audience with a megaphone and a several empty silver cans connected to a rope.
– Walking slowly towards the audience and shaking the silver cans. [The clattering sound of the cans is from afar hearable.]
– Stopping at random points of the walk, talking through the megaphone the sentence: “Uwaga! Uwaga! Dziwne jest ten świat! (Attention! Attention! The world is strange!)” [People strolling through the parc get also aware about the performance.]
– Gently moving colorful feathers with the arms while hiding behind the shirts and ladders.
– Taking the four shirts from the ladders and placing them in a form of a petal on the grass.
– Pouring milk into a violin. [Inside the violin is blue pigment.] Gently shaking the violin over the four shirts. [The milk mixes with the blue pigment, which drips onto the flour shirts.]
– Taking the ladders and throwing them into the air.
– Placing a terracotta pot on my hand and bang it several times with a hammer. [At first there is a bell like sound hearable until the pot cracks and the shards fall down to the ground.]
– Binding a long red beak on my face, walking around and lightning the beak at one point.
– Pecking the beak into grass. [The beak deforms but each peck.]
– Arranging the four, blue sprinkled shirts on an umbrella.
– Lighting up a white smoke torch. As soon as the smoke appeared, walking slowly away from the audience into the parc. [The smoke leaves a trail behind.]

Members of the art association “Czarny Karzeł” with audience members after the performance.