Warsaw, a leading metropolis of post-Communist Europe, is known for its collection of colossal statues
depicting brawny Soviet-era steelworkers and national heroes. Less well known
are its new-age monuments and art installations. As the blossoming centerpiece
of ‘New Europe’, Anna J. Kutor looks at the Polish capital’s ephemeral outdoor
art designs and quirky permanent fixtures that have not only enlivened the lackluster cityscape but have sparked the imagination and provoked debate on contemporary art.

Tropical Dreams

Up until the dawn of the 21st century, only heavily intoxicated youngster rolling out of beach-themed bars ever
experienced the feeling of tropical tranquillity in Warsaw. Then, out of a
clear blue sky, came a life-sized replica of a palm tree in the city’s main
thoroughfares allowing even super-sober citizens a chance to enjoy a slice of
coastal chilling (should they squint their eyes during sunset and
image laying on the beach with a cocktail in hand). Perched on the intersection
of Aleje Jerozolimskie (Jerusalem Avenue) and Nowy Swiat (New World), this 15 meter-high exotic tree, most akin to a Canary date palm, was created by
Bydgoszcz-born visual artist Joanna Rajkowska after a journey through Israel in
2002. Adding diversity, color and a generous helping of absurdity to the
historic boulevard, Rajkowska’s pseudo-organic palm project (originally named
“Greetings from Jerusalem Avenue) symbolizes Warsaw’s rough-and-tumble
past as well as it’s changing character.

The city, as the artist explains, has to be flexible and open in the sense of readiness to accept diverse meaning,
diverse identities and it has to be able to adapt itself to the changing needs
of its inhabitants. In her opinion, the Palm has become a kind of energy center
or container for otherness in the sense of its ability to open up possibilities.

Flight of Fancy

Cyclists have difficulty maintaining balance, drivers stop and stare, pedestrians keep snapping photos and they put a smile on everyone’s face. The cause of all this cheerfulness is Pegasuses,
the latest alfresco art installations to grace the capital. A five-piece
masterpiece featuring vibrantly colored winged horses in the courtyard of the
Krasiński Palace, Pegasuses is the brainchild of designer duo Beata Konarska
and Paweł Konarski. It temporary project (on display through May) commissioned
by the National Library on the occasion of a Mediterranean-inspired exhibition honoring Polish poet Zbigniew Herbert. These eye-catching figures, each over
three meters high and four meters long, are made from painted sheet metal
weighing 500 kilograms in total. The mystical herd, as the designer’s
describe, brought a cheerful and positive energy to the area. At nighttime the
fronts of the mythical creatures are bathed in festive lights, giving them a
compelling look that is hypnotic and otherworldly.

Animal Art

Hidden in the depths of Praski Park, among the wide variety of flora and fauna,
sharp-eyed visitors can spot a scattering of artful animals. Made of steel and
stone, these well weathered creatures signal the closeness of their
flesh-and-blood counterparts in Poland’s oldest Zoo. A chunky bison, a
miniature elephant and other cuddly characters make up the creative crew, which
is led by the 5-metre-tall  metal giraffe
wistfully looking out over the trees. The playful steel structure was brought
into being by sculptor Władysław Frycz and donated to the park in 1981.

Brass Beats

In Praga, Warsaw’s arty east-side suburb, a brassy street musician act electrifies the air with the sound of music.  Despite being a solid setup with a steady
repertoire of songs and a fair bit of experience under their belts, the Kapela
Podwórkowa assemble won’t bellow their street beats or even move until they’ve
been paid. The collectives’ no-pay-no-play policy has more to do with their
stringent structure than any assertion of artistic ego as the five-member brass
band is actually cast in brass.

This noisy monument, standing on the cobblestone corner of Kłopotowskiego and Florianska streets, was sculpted by local artist Andrzej Renes in 2006. These true-to-life figures pay tribute to
an iconic pre-war band comprising of a drummer, guitarist,  violinist, a mandolin and an accordion
player. To make them perform, music-lovers must send an text message to the
number 7141 with the text KAPELA and then select a tune from the 100-strong
play list of patriotic classics such as “It’s possible to like
Warsaw” and “Bridge on the left, bridge on the right”. In an instant,
the brass-bound orchestra with burst into song (well, actually, the secret
speakers will just turn on).

Arachnid in the Air

For those (like me) whose Top 10 list of freaky nightmares includes being ambushed
by a giant hairy spider and then being turned into a brain-dead zombie by its
venom should probably be warned about the oversized tarantula replica hanging
above the entrance of W Oparach Absurdu (In the Fumes of Absurdity ), one of
Warsaw’s coolest (and most Bohemian) bars. A cheeky and seriously sinister
symbol, this black mischief-maker was fastened to the venue’s facade by its
owner, Elżbieta Komorowska, an actress and artists who purchased the homemade
pesky creature from a street vendor. It’s surreal, stately and satirical - just
like it’s working-class neighborhood, Praga, which has shed its former shady
image to become the center of artistic creativity in Warsaw. Beyond the
hair-raising gate keeper, the bar’s interior is also flushed with eccentric
ornaments ranging from glow-in-the-dark religious icons to blue liquors stored
in sperms-shaped tubes. If you need some help soothing frayed nerves, sample
the Spider Drink, a colorful concoction made up of vodka, black currant and
banana.

Urban Upgrade

“I love big cities - it’s a natural environment for me and its the most complex space and challenging background
for art,” says Kamila Szejnoch, maker of interactive installations for
urban spaces. “Public space is more real and inspiring and in it art somehow
feels more palpable than autonomous art closed amongst white walls of a
gallery”.

Engaging the city’s inhabitants in a direct dialogue with contemporary art is the aim of Szejnoch, a young urban
artist living in the Polish capital. Completing her artistic studies at the
sculpture department at Warsaw’s Academy of Fine Arts in 2004 she turned her
focus on urban designs and continued her education at the Dutch Art Institute
in Holland. For her artistic endeavors, she has received a variety of awards and
grants, including a year-long artistic scholarship from the Polish Ministry of
Culture in 2007 and a stipend from the Swiss Government for artistic
development in Switzerland in 2008. Over time, she has become increasingly
fascinated with monuments and areas closely linked to history, religion and
ideology.

“Most of my works consist of two main elements. One is historical, traditional or closed in its form, while the
second one is more contemporary, open, playful, and interactive,” she
says, “I have been trying to update, ridicule and just evoke outdated
layers of the past by adding something new, contrasting and distinct from their
original style or function.” Building a bridge between the past and the
present been the focus of her latest Warsaw-based project  “Carousel, Slide and Swing”, a
three piece installation that adding perky and witty elements to outdated
war-memorial monuments in Praga, effectively turning the symbolic sculptures
into giant toys. “There are several “dead” memorials in Warsaw
that served communist propaganda to commemorate Polish-Soviet brotherhood in
arms and liberation of Warsaw in 1945. With this project I wanted to say
something to those grim monuments with their closed form and distorted
message.”

The first part of the project to be designed and engineered was ‘Swing’, winner of the Szpilman Award 2008
rewarding temporary works of art, in which the colossal bronze statue of the
soldier commemorating the 1st Tadeusz Kościuszko Infantry Division was
appointed a tiny red swing. The installation was roundly criticized by city
officials  and war veterans as being
frivolous and inappropriate, so permits were yanked and the six-day project
into an ‘illegal’ evening of fun. “For me this statue is a communist
propaganda monument from the former era but for the Berlin Army soldier’s point
of view it is a well-deserved homage to their sacrifice. This is the best
example how much history can differ in the perspective of individual and
collective memories, and my aim was to highlight the dissonance and complexity
of this situation.”

Street Spirit

A large-scale public art project entitled “Praga - Right Side of the Vistula River” has birthed a sizable
collection of art installations that will add some much-needed humor and
whimsy to the streets and squares of Warsaw’s Praga precinct. The works,
currently on display on the grounds of the Koneser Vodka Factory, were
fabricated mostly from found objects and inexpensive weathered materials,
including recycled woods and metals. Just inside the factory’s Gothic gateway
stands “Amy”, a textured wooden replica of troubled British singer
Amy Winehouse carved from a single tree trunk by artist Józef Nowak. Near the
songstress lies a frail figure, “The Thinker” by Stefan Sławiński,
falling from his steel frame and crumbling under the weight of his own tangled
troubles. There’s also a eerie duo of wooden figures designed by Marcin Rząs.
Positioned on the corner of the brick-clad factory, the no-name couple - each
facing a different direction - is bound together by their proximity and
faceless nature, yet they feel separate and distant.

Perhaps the most striking structure in the group is “Horse Market” as named by its creator Jan Kubicki,
features an aggressively posing silhouette of a larger-than-life horse pieced
together from all kinds of rusting metal rods and crumpled sheets of steel.
Behind the combative pony, there’s a cluster of overtly-modern metal artwork
compiled from pipe parts and metal mesh as well as a monster-sized chess set
all waiting to be escorted to their final resting place.