Pola Dwurnik: Langwidere Series

The gallery is presenting a solo show by the artist who sets herself the concept of identity as the focal point of her artistic practice. Identity as the concept that defines a person, the criteria that distinguishes one from another, and creates uniqueness and individuality.

In the digital era of today, the ultimately technical options allow a person to live simultaneously multiple lives at a time, in various countries, with various titles, professions or personal lives.

She uses large oil on canvas or porcelain figurines to portray famous female artists of the 20th century. Dwurnik’s work use a critical undertone: The fragility of the porcelain figurines stands for the difficulties a female artist has to undergo to coexistence with her male counterparts, and they symbolizes the fragility of a female artist‘s career. Additionally, they have a decorative character, intending the female artist’s fight for their work to be just as valued as male artists’ works.

By displaying the heads of other female artists, Dwurnik is aiming to express her own identity as an artist. While assuming the role of Princess Langwidere – a character with thirty exchangeable heads in Frank Baum’s third Oz book published in 1907 – she internalizes the identities of the artists who have impressed her and questions how they have been in influencing her. But who really is Princess Langwidere ? Nobody knows. The changing of her head not only alters her appearance but her identity too.