New exhibition at the Mathematical Tower
A new temporary exhibition ‘Powstające w płomieniu’ (‘Rising in the Flame’) by Katarzyna Krej is under construction at the Mathematical Tower. The opening of the exhibition is scheduled for 18 October at 6 pm.
Katarzyna Krej’s glass emerging from the flame
The exhibition can be considered almost literally – all the works on display by Katarzyna Krej are the result of direct contact between glass rods and the fire of a gas burner. The flame shapes the glass, gives it a certain thickness, colour and transparency, but the final meaning is given to it by the artist, who creates orifices, spheres, human figures and, most recently, objects with biomorphic connotations. Katarzyna Krej works in series, creating a series of glass objects centred on a specific motif, which she extends and expands with new forms. The process of gradual transformation can be found, for example, in a series of orifices – glass collars of various sizes seem to transform from a lacy circle around the neck to an exuberant form of open-work ornamentation, the fluid line of which escapes the rigid profile of the orifice and becomes an elaborate, wavy glass object. This creative processuality influenced a further series of works relating to the forms of life in its micro and macro worlds. Subtle formal emanations of glass collars can be found in the most recent objects presented at the exhibition The sculptures ‘Początek’ (‘The Beginning’) and ‘Kokon’ (‘The Cocoon’), enclosed in a specific shape with slightly wavy lines, organise internally tangled glass threads, which, seemingly chaotic, are arranged according to the artist’s intended intention. Katarzyna Krej creates her works using transparent glass, but she is also increasingly willing to use colour (cobalt, blue, orange, green, black), which adds value and enriches the expressive power of her glass objects.
Katarzyna Krej, who had a break of almost 20 years from working with glass, returned to the world of art in 2022 with successive projects and exhibitions in Poland and abroad (including at Glass Art 2022 in Nice and an exhibition accompanying the glass festival and fashion show in Biot, France). In 2023, she was among the finalists of the Horbowy International Glass Competition, and in 2024 she was awarded the Creative Scholarship of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage The exhibition ‘Powstające w płomieniu’, organised by the Museum of the University of Wrocław, is another step taken by the artist in her still-developing artistic career, which, it seems, is only just gaining momentum
Ewelina Kwiatkowska
curator, art historian
