Artistellar Gallery is pleased to present In the Dawn, a solo show by Polish artist Monika Marchewka. This is the artist’s first UK solo show and presents her most recent works. The exhibition will run from the 7th of December to the 6th of January excluding Christmas holidays) in our London gallery on 1st Floor, 39 Margaret Street.
Spanning over eight medium to large canvases, Monika Marchewka presents her work as a tale. In The Dawn is an imaginative, poetic title that is also a song written by the British composer Edward Elgar. In Marchewka’s work, this title refers to the elusive moment of being awaken from the state of dreaming. Coming from a film production background, the artist creates painting as if each piece were a component of a movie. “ I choose frames and topics in such a way that if I wanted to make a film based on them, they are a ready-made storyboard.”
During her film production years, Marchewka worked on fully painted films; ‘Loving Vincent’ or ‘The Peasants’ , which lay grounds for her storytelling and painterly language. Her paintings are figurative but surreal. They are dreamy and magical yet somewhat haunted. The artist culminates on the verge of dreaming and consciousness. In ‘In The Dawn" I wanted to tell a story about a mysterious morning when we don't know if we've already woken up or if we're still dreaming. Is what we are looking at a dream or will it turn into a nightmare. I would like the viewer to decide for himself which way the story will develop.’
Marchewska’s main object in her storytelling technique, naturally reflected in her paintings, is for the viewer to decide which way the story will unfold. The artist brilliantly creates a balance between the ‘dark’ side and ‘light side’. Rendering clouds, fog, and water as her signature elements, Marchewka’s paintings set the premises for her female characters. They inhabit the dreamy setting as a part of their journey towards something. That something can be something tangible, superior or spiritual. It suggests that there are many journeys one might embark on, and it’s absolutely up to our individual selves to explore or reach that.
It is noticeable that Marchewka’s characters in her paintings are often accompanied by another female character or something peculiarly invisible. That something is meant to overlook, help or divert from the character’s target or final destination. The artist melodramatically leaves the rest of the interpretation to the viewer. ”I wanted to leave that up for discussion. Let everyone find their journey and their purpose in the paintings.”
Monika Marchewka (b.1988) is a Polish artist living and working in Gdynia, Poland. In 2013, she graduated from the Jan Matejko Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow in the painting department. After graduation, she started working as an animator in the first fully painted film ever, "Loving Vincent" (BreakThru films production company). Later, she was promoted and supervised 40 painters from around the world and participated in the production of the film "The Peasants". While working at BreakThu films, she produced her own art and exhibited in several shows around Poland and abroad. She now paints full-time.
