Nostalgia: Seekers of Fading Stars

The geopolitical situation, armed conflicts, including the full-scale war in Ukraine, the Covid pandemic and their impact on the economy have created a sense of destabilisation and pessimism about the future. Bold utopian visions have been superseded by nostalgia – a reflexive feeling of loss, an often ambivalent emotion that can splinter into both longing and belonging. Svetlana Boym defined it not only as ‘a longing for a home that no longer exists or has never existed’, but also as ‘a romance with one’s own phantasy’. The exhibition, which includes the works of 22 artists associated with Kraków, representing the generation born between 1979 and 2001, is like a smile through tears – an attempt to conceal, yet also alleviate sorrow.

The paintings, installations and sculptures on display have arisen as an attempt to create a refuge for memories; they are reminiscences from childhood that can offer solace. This is largely representational art. Some artists focus on strong narratives, taking on the role of tellers of fairy tales, myths, urban legends, film and TV series stories. Others, in order to capture the essence of experiencing nostalgia emotionally, seek more abstract formal solutions to create immersive spaces, or try to capture how the desire to return to the past can manifest. Regardless of their individual approach to figuration, within the exhibition the artists have created autonomous lands with a gamut of dreamlike ambience: from blissful dreams to anxiety-inducing nightmares. The intensity of this content has something of a multithreaded oneiric reality, a cluster of afterimages and memories seamlessly overlaid with creations of the imagination. The exhibition is intended as a journey to the carefree times of childhood, when we were bursting with energy and curiosity, and our imaginarium was made up of the Lion King and Bouli, who were just as real as the view from the backyard or the school corridor.