Joanna Warsza in conversation with Ana Janevski
on the Polish-Romani pavilion at the 59th Venice Biennale

Oct 6, 2022 6:30-8pm EST
JAMES HOWELL FOUNDATION
RSVP HERE

140 PERRY STREET
2ND FLOOR
NEW YORK, NY

FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

“In the life of every human being, there is a need for magic and enchantment, but not always: at certain moments, we should disenchant the world, moments, situations, negative emotions and paradigms. Selecting a few related to the representation of Romani people in a stereotypical and stigmatising way, I try to disenchant and demythologise them by reversing how we are being seen.” – Małgorzata Mirga-Tas

Titled Re-enchanting the World, the Polish pavilion at the 59th Venice Biennale is a manifesto on Roma identity and culture. Showcasing work by Małgorzata Mirga-Tas, the first Roma artist to ever be shown in a national pavilion, the exhibition draws inspiration from the Renaissance frescoes of the Palazzo Schifanoia in Ferrara, Italy to reinscribe a Roma perspective into art historical discourse. Through the patchwork tapestries that make up the show, the artist carries out—both physically and metaphorically—the work of repair, the craft of narrative, and the experience of Aby Warburg’s nachleben, or life after life of images. 

In this program organized by Independent Curators International (ICI), pavilion co-curator Joanna Warsza is joined by Ana Janevski, Curator, Department of Media and Performance, Museum of Modern Art, to discuss the concept of re-enchanting the world as realized in the Polish pavilion. The conversation examines the themes of interdependence, transnationality, and cyclicality that informed both Mirga-Tas’s exhibition and the curatorial process of bringing it to Venice. Warsza also offers a glimpse into her upcoming show, And Warren Niesluchowski Was There—Guest, Host, Ghost, co-curated with Sina Najafi, which opens at Cabinet NYC on October 11 and deals with the topic of ontological homelessness. 

Live ASL interpretation will be available at this event.

Space is limited – RSVP recommended.

Presenters

Joanna Warsza is a co-curator of the Polish-Romani pavilion at the 59 Venice Biennale, Program Director of CuratorLab at Konstfack University of Arts in Stockholm, and an interdependent curator, editor and writer.

Ana Janevski is currently Curator in the Department of Media and Performance Art at The Museum of Modern Art.

Organizer

Independent Curators International (ICI) supports the work of curators to help create stronger art communities through experimentation, collaboration, and international engagement.

Credits

This program is presented in collaboration with the Polish Cultural Institute New York and is supported, in part, by a grant from the James Howell Foundation, and by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with City Council, and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature.