An English language version of the Ludwika Ogorzelec monograph, a sculptor recognized worldwide for her fascination with space and unique sculptures and structures, is an illustrated presentation of the sculptural work that the Polish artist has been doing for 36 years. In addition to biographical information and program texts, we will also find photographs of her works, including those that no longer exist or are in the possession of unknown owners.
Ludwika Ogorzelec is a recognized Polish sculptor, graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Wrocław (currently the Eugeniusz Geppert Academy of Fine Arts). Since 1985 she has lived and worked in Paris. Despite her strong ties with France and Paris, she worked there with the famous artist César, had her first exhibitions, achieved her first successes, and started her international career - creating her works, which are site-specific objects, in many countries on all continents, she always presents herself as a Polish artist (in Polish, and this is how, in male form, she defines her profession). This is significant because the sculptor recognizes that besides artistic and cognitive goals, her work has one more task - to make Polish culture famous. She successfully realizes this goal by participating in symposia, festivals and outdoor events, preparing individual and group exhibitions all over the world, including Australia, the United States, Vietnam, Spain and Sweden. Ludwika Ogorzelec is known to Polish audiences thanks to projects from the series “Space Crystalization”, such as “My Eyes Level IV” (Museum of Architecture in Wrocław, 2004), “Light phenomena”. (Studio Gallery - Gallery II, Warsaw, 2007), “Przejścia”. (streets of the Town Hall quarter in Wrocław, 2015) or “Spectrum of the Middle Ages”. (Malbork Castle, 2017).
“Ludwika Ogorzelec. Space Crystalization”.
The first part of this monograph provides us with the knowledge about the creative attitude of the artist and her program. We learn about the experiences and experiences that made the sculptural material, the first matter of sculptures by Ludwika Ogorzelec is space: “Invisible to the human eye, imperceptible as long as something visible - for example, a line of durable materials - does not define it. (quoted from “Ludwik Ogorzelec. Space Crystalization”). On the following pages we find the effects of the artist’s fascination with air, space, the laws of nature and physics. These are sculptures-structures made of natural wood or transparent cellophane, sometimes also glass and metal. They form two main cycles of works. The first one is “Equivalent Instruments” - a cycle of mobile sculpture, about which he writes in his programme text: “These are mobile sculptures built as delicate structures using a ”hard” but very thin line. Although they penetrate the space with their openwork, they are still portable objects that can be viewed from the outside. The next cycle is entitled “Crystallization of space” and although it originates from the artist’s first experiments, it is already “a different path on a marked out creative path”. Ludwika Ogorzelec “invites” the viewer into the interior of her sculptures-installations. Thus, it makes the viewer cease to be merely an observer. It becomes a part of the situation. The following chapters are in turn: a record of conversations with Jaromiar Jedliński, texts by John K. Grande and Marek Czachor referring directly to Ludwika Ogorzelec’s sculptural research and a chronicle prepared by the artist and Elżbieta Łubowicz - co-editor of the monograph. The whole is complemented by an extensive documentation of the sculptor’s work.
The book was published in three languages: Polish and English - thanks to the financial support of the KGHM Polska Miedź Foundation and French - thanks to the ORLEN Foundation - Dar Serca.
