Complex

An important group of works held in the Arsenal Gallery collection are those referring to the region of Podlachia and the city of Białystok, the multicultural character of the area, the urban infrastructure and city life. Among them is Karolina Bielawska’s cycle of paintings entitled Complex. It was produced during the “Draughtsman’s Contract” art residency, in whose framework the Arsenal Gallery invited Karolina Bielawska, Julie Chovin and Rafał Żarski to create works referring to the city’s landmark and pride: the Branicki Palace, which in the 18^th century – the period when it was owned by Jan Klemens Branicki – was known as the “Polish Versailles”. The Arsenal Gallery has resided in the palace complex, more precisely: in its former armoury, for over fifty years.

The departure point for Bielawska’s explorations was provided by conservation works conducted in the palace’s Aula Magna in 2017. This permits us to seek the cycle’s meanings in the history, cultural value and current status of the Branicki Palace. The damage incurred by the building during the 2^nd World War totalled nearly 70%, and during its hurried reconstruction insufficient attention was paid to accuracy in recreating its interior decoration and architectural details. In the year 1950, the palace became the seat of the newly founded Medical Academy (now Medical University). The palace’s historical value increases steadily with the advance of research on the person of its owner and his court, while the work of the Gallery and the University define the palace’s social function in the urban space.

While the conservation works were in progress, the entrance to the Aula Magna was closed with planks of oriented strand board (OSB). Bielawska repeated their size in her works; she also made use of other materials employed by the conservators working in situ: a primer with an admixture of quartz sand and silicate paints in the colours applied during the renovation. She thus utilised materials which are hardly associated with painting: OSB planks are used in construction and silicate paints are applied on external surfaces due to their durability. However, while these materials provide a strong link between the paintings and the palace, the works themselves, being devoid of any Białystok context, are first and foremost treatises on to the art of painting. Bielawska investigates the painterly qualities of industrial products, concentrating on their texture, thickness and colour. She constructs disciplined compositions without an anecdote. Resigning from an attempt at narrative permits her to focus on painting per se, on its ability to express thoughts and emotions, as well as on the viewer’s perception.

Izabela Kopania

translated from Polish by Klaudyna Michałowicz