March 20 – June 30, 2025
Opening: Thursday, March 20 at 7:00 PM
The Kosciuszko Foundation
15 East 65th Street, New York
Admission: Free, RSVP
Artistic Director: Daria Solar
Honorary Curator, Lunar Codex Founder: Samuel Peralta
Featured Artists:
Katarzyna Adamiak-Jaśnikowska
Eva Evangelista, Agnieszka Kotarska
Jakub Podlodowski
Ewa Prończuk-Kuziak
Daria Solar
Katarzyna Widmańska
Anna Wypych
The Kosciuszko Foundation and Polish Cultural Institute New York are pleased to present The Real Within: A New Generation of Polish Realism, a group exhibition showcasing the work of eight contemporary Polish painters. Marking the centennial of the Foundation’s activities, the exhibition pays homage to Poland’s artistic heritage while highlighting a new generation of artists whose work exemplifies the strength and vibrancy of Polish realism today.
While distinct in style and approach, these contemporary works reflect the enduring tradition of Polish realism, long recognized for its technical mastery and deep emotional resonance. Presented alongside the Foundation’s permanent collection—home to masterpieces by 19th-century Polish luminaries—these paintings affirm realism’s continued evolution and relevance in contemporary art.
The Real Within explores how a new generation of artists engages with realist figuration, expanding its emotional and mystical possibilities while refining techniques of image-making. These artists approach pictorialism with imagination and precision, producing figures, portraits, landscapes, and still life that are neither Photorealism nor an extension of Surrealism. Their interpretations of realism are free from nostalgia, offering instead a fresh, immediate perspective—one that resonates powerfully in today’s world.
Daria Solar’s work, featured in the exhibition, explores the symbolic relationship between humans and machines, depicting neo-human figures entwined with AI to reflect the challenges and triumphs of modern science.
About Daria Solar
Daria Solar‘s art focuses on the symbolic relationship between humans and machines. Her neo-human characters, entangled with artificial intelligence, reflect the challenges and successes of modern science. In Mythology – Reactivation, she uses sensual, nude figures to reinterpret ancient myths in a contemporary context. Her Interior Landscapes series reveals the micro-world of computer interiors, showcasing the beauty of electronic components in neo-abstract compositions. Based in Łódź, Poland, she was part of the team behind the Oscar-nominated film Loving Vincent. She holds degrees in English Studies, Artistic Computer Graphics, and completed painting courses at the New York Academy of Art.
The exhibition is organized by The Kosciuszko Foundation and partly sponsored by the Marek Maria Pienkowski Foundation. The participation of Daria Solar is supported by the Polish Cultural Institute New York.
Photo credits:
Daria Solar, Virtual Boy, oil on canvas 80×50, 2020
Daria Solar, Thinker, oil on canvas, 50×80, 2019
Daria Solar, Nike, oil on canvas 220x120cm, 2020
Daria Solar, Intermission, oil on canvas 110x70cm, 2021
