Joanna DWORAK, Poppies

100x120, acrylic on canvas, 2015

I was born in 1986.

Since birth I have been connected with Rawicz. For the time of acquiring higher education, I left my hometown to graduate from the Krakow Art Schools in 2009, a year later from the AGH University of Science and Technology, and in 2012 and 2014 from two postgraduate courses at the Eugeniusz Geppert Academy of Fine Arts in Wroclaw. I graduated from the Faculty of Interior Design and Design with a perfect grade in the studio of Roman Uss. Among other things, I am an interior designer by education and this profession is what I do every day.

My adventure with cut-outs began during classes at the Academy of Fine Arts under Professor Leszek Mickos, who commissioned students to make a collage with an autumn theme. I prepared one, then a second, third and more, so that by the end of the semester I already had a dozen of them. I fell in love with this form of artistic expression and collage turned from a small adventure into a passion. After graduation, I continued to create. I took scissors and glue on every trip, whether it was a vacation or just a weekend trip out of town. Creating collages was and still is for me a way out of boredom, relaxation after a hard and stressful day, but also a way to express what I feel.

The pictures I created - mostly 10x10cm thumbnails - I put away in a drawer for a long time. Over time, I began to frame them and tentatively share them with my loved ones. During my maternity leave, it was time to reflect, take stock of my artistic activities so far and plan the next ones, and eventually also decide to present my work to a wider audience. Accordingly, a profile was created on a social networking site, where I regularly share my latest works, as well as this online store, where you can purchase framed images.

My compositions mostly refer to the natural world and architecture. The most important thing for me within the resulting collage is the juxtaposition of colors - what emotions they will evoke and how they will correspond with their surroundings. The finished picture is supposed to be consistent primarily in terms of colors. Because of my education and professional work, I always try to take into account the use value as well, how the work will look in a particular interior, on a wall.

To create my collages I mainly use colorful magazines, fabrics, threads and ribbons. Some pieces are painted or drawn by me first. Sometimes I use my old paintings, which, when cut and combined with other materials, create a completely new image. Also hidden in individual collages are letters from friends from my school days, pages from books, photographs and poems my dad wrote for me when I was a few years old.