Kultura i Sztuka [Culture and Art]

The Twożywo collective, active in the years 1998–2011, applied techniques from the intersection of popular and high art, which are just as successfully used for commercial purposes (in advertising, posters, typography), as for the purpose of purely artistic expression. Critics note that such approach stems from the tradition of the Russian avant garde of the 20th century. Thus the activities of the collective can be considered both in political as well as typically linguistic categories. The artistic explorations of Twożywo are placed within the framework of playing with typography, of treating the letter as an art form. As such, they are close to visual and concrete poetry. Focusing on words, the artists liberate them from meaning and arrange them in constellations of interdependent contents, emphasizing their critical potential. They are thus able to extract language from the thoughtless stream of news and persistent advertising messages of the new media-speak.

The cluster of the two words “KULTURA I SZTUKA” (culture and art) is accompanied by a “mirror” reflection, an alter ego of a sort: “KURWA I SUKA” (whore and bitch). The two juxtaposed slogans carry extremely opposite connotations: the lofty register clashes with vulgarisms. Initially perceived as iconoclastic, the juxtaposition is actually a political and social message offered by Twożywo in between the lines. The artists point to the current position of culture and art – in countries where capitalism is developing at a galloping pace, the significance of the two has been marginalized, both in the policy of the government, the state budget, as well as in the lives of ordinary citizens.

As a result, culture and art are seen as an unnecessary burden on the economy of the country. As a result of the above, there are no well thought out cultural policies of the state, and art is hardly present, even in school curricula. The educational crisis leads to a situation in which the explorations and achievements of artists are being undermined. It particularly applies to contemporary artists who often deal with difficult cultural issues of morality, identity, and religion. The play on words – concise, however semantically capacious – is very reflective of social disapproval, which is often manifested by means of dismissive incomprehension, but also by attacks on artists and art institutions.

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