and zośka at Jotka’s

The exhibition’s title – “and zośka at Jotka’s” – is a multilayered play on meanings, intertwining personal biographical threads with elements of the artist’s latest formal explorations. “Zośka” refers to a traditional Polish dexterity game played with a colorful, often handmade pom-pom – a symbol of lightness, motion, and childhood play. These colorful elements, appearing alongside some sculptures from the new series, serve as both visual and conceptual commentary on the idea of balance – understood as a constant tension between strength and fragility. “Jotka,” on the other hand, is the phonetic spelling of Kędziora’s initials (“J.K.”) and acts as his artistic pseudonym. The juxtaposition of these two motifs in the title thus points to both the intimate, almost familial nature of the exhibition and the experimental lightness with which the artist approaches form, equilibrium, and meaning in sculpture.

The exhibition is designed as a two-part composition. The outdoor section, available since early September, features iconic balancing sculptures – globally unique artworks suspended above the ground, a signature invention of Kędziora. Among them are works embodying grotesque metaphors of transformation (e.g., Acrobat with a Chair, On a Broken Hoop), as well as more naturalistic figures connected to the world of circus and acrobatics (The Waving One, The Trainer). The group also includes pieces exploring femininity (Playing with a Dolphin) and formal experiments blending balancing sculpture with so-called “flattened forms” (The King and The Queen). The entire outdoor showcase forms a cohesive, Upper Silesian premiere mini-retrospective that also contributes to the artist’s global project – Balancing Figures for the Protection of Cultural Heritage.

Inside the gallery – specifically in the Dark Tichauer Art Gallery hall, which recently hosted works by such acclaimed artists as Marc Chagall and Salvador Dalí – a new artistic direction by Kędziora will make its debut: the so-called Flattened works. This term refers to the artist’s experimental formal approach, where sculpture takes on an almost relief-like character, balancing between flatness and three-dimensionality. These figures – including The King and The Queen, Wounded, and The Magician – had been previously teased at international exhibitions (including at the Polish Sculpture Center in Orońsko), but it is at Tichauer Gallery that they will receive their world premiere within a newly expanded semantic framework.

Three key factors shaped the final form of the exhibition: the initial concept of a joint exhibition with works by Joan Miró, Kędziora’s participation in Jerzy Duda-Gracz’s plein-air event in Szczyrk, and the reorganization of the gallery’s curatorial team. Inspiration from Miró’s art led to bolder use of color and the inclusion of dynamic details that enhance the compositional energy and interactivity of the pieces. The plein-air experience contributed to the expansion of the Flattened series and the decision to unveil – for the first time – intimate preparatory sketches related to these works.

The gallery’s new curatorial team, revising the original concept, chose to relocate the exhibition to a space imbued with the aura of great masters and to more strongly emphasize the global reach of Kędziora’s oeuvre. This is supported by the inclusion of photographic documentation by the artist’s son, Bartłomiej Kędziora, showcasing the Balancing Figures exhibited in prestigious international venues.

Complementing the exhibition is the premiere of two new series: Playing Zośka and Circling Birds, in which the artist experiments with alternative methods of balancing – moving beyond the previously used horizontal “wire pedestal.” The remaining elements related to these series have been deliberately kept secret and will be revealed over the course of the exhibition’s unfolding events.

Although Jerzy Kędziora may not necessarily identify with the canon of contemporary classics, his presence in exhibition contexts alongside figures such as Chagall and Dalí – both in Poland and abroad (United States, Benelux) – attests to the recognition his work has garnered in the international art discourse.