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Modern art at the AGH UST. MOCAK shares its Collection

A photo of a painting hanging in one of the university halls. Two people walk by the painting, their silhouettes are blurred.

Edward Dwurnik, Hunting a Dengerous Villain, MOCAK Collection, C-7 building, 4th floor. Photo: R. Sosin

Modern art at the AGH UST. MOCAK shares its Collection
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The AGH UST Campus transforms into a painting exhibition space for the works from the Collection of MOCAK the Museum of Contemporary Art in Krakow, which have been reproduced as prints on canvas. This method renders the viewing as close as possible to experiencing the real paintings. Each work has descriptions in Polish and English, which offers its interpretation and contextualises it in relation to the body of work of respective artists.

In the open spaces of the AGH UST, more than a dozen reproductions from the MOCAK Collection will be on display. Among other things, they will include the works of Pola Dwurnik, an art duet Muntean/Rosenblum, a Japanese artist Shinji Ogawa, and Edward Dwurnik.

‘Each day, the AGH UST Campus is visited by several thousand people. Students and employees move around these spaces on their way to work or classes. Therefore, they spend a considerable portion of their days there. It is also important that they find the space to rest and take a break from their daily tasks. I hope that the selection of paintings, and also all other forms of art that are present on our campus, brings our community a moment of relaxation; and additionally that it shapes the aesthetics and sensitises. The university grounds, given that they are located in the heart of the city, are the best art gallery one can imagine. The placement of the paintings in our buildings is an excellent opportunity to unintrusively present interesting and very inspiring works of art. Artists and museums are constantly looking for spaces to exhibit their collections. We are meeting them halfway, which also benefits our community and environment by making it attractive and diverse’, emphasises Prof. Jerzy Lis, AGH UST Rector.

From the left: Pola Dwurnik, Mercy!; Alicja Biała, The Polish Landscape | MOCAK Collection, C-7 building, ground floor. Photo: R. Sosin

Two paintings hang on the wall in one of the university halls.

The works of art from the MOCAK Collection will be showcased at the Faculty of Humanities and the Admissions Centre. In its selection, the Museum has taken into account the specific circumstances of the exhibition. The selected works are intended for young and ambitious people facing a professional challenge.

‘Crossing paths with art has a marked impact on the need to define oneself. The goal of the paintings on display is to direct the viewers to art – but also to emphasise the importance of a critical  and ideologically independent attitude. From its inception, the MOCAK programme has been based on the premise that art is an important tool in life and that its role is to serve society. Showing the works of art within the space of a higher education institution, we particularly want to focus on the following message: don’t be afraid to think’, explains Maria Anna Potocka, Director of MOCAK.

From the left: Muntean / Rosenblum, untitled [They realized that their capacity…]; untitled [The whole scene had...], | MOCAK Collection, U2 building, ground floor. Photo: R. Sosin

Two paintings hang on the wall in one of the university halls.

Paintings from the MOCAK Collection at the AGH UST

location: A-0 building, Professor’s Club

  • Pola Dwurnik, Young Cracow Painters, 7 works in a series, 2008
  • Shinji Ogawa, Venezia 1, Venezia 2, Pisa 5, from the Perfect World series, 2014

location: U-2 building

  • Muntean / Rosenblum, untitled [They realized that their capacity…], 2011
  • Muntean / Rosenblum, untitled [“The whole scene…”], 2014

location: C-7 building, Faculty of Humanities, 4th floor 

  • Tomasz Ciecierski, Painter's Palette, 1972
  • Edward Dwurnik, Hunting a Dengerous Villain, 1982
  • Tomasz Ciecierski, Zamalowywanie

location: C-7 building, Faculty of Humanities, ground floor

  • Pola Dwurnik, Mercy!, 2008/2009
  • Csaba Nemes, Sense of Shame, 2013
  • Alicja Biała, The Polish Landscape, 2017–2018

***

This is not the first time that the AGH UST has turned into an arena for artistic expression. It is worth remembering that the main hall of the historical building of the Academy was quite recently used by a ballet group to perform an etude. Furthermore, the campus is filled with numerous modern sculptures and installations created in cooperation with the Academy of Fine Arts. The green spaces at the AGH UST are adorned with the sculptures of Prof. Bronisław Chromy (1925–2017), a prominent artist from Krakow, the author of the Dragon sculpture at the foot of the Wawel Royal Castle. Another form of art also available on campus is the so-called ‘industrial sculpture’ that grabs the attention of viewers and directs them to unorthodox forms of elements used in manufacturing. Showcased properly, they transform into an ornament that adds to the visual quality of the open spaces, for example, a ship engine or a winding engine. The AGH UST also welcomes murals. These large-scale paintings have been present on the Krakow trail of street art for years.

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