A visit to Edward Krasiński’s studio in Warsaw, May 6, 1998
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- A visit to Edward Krasiński’s studio in Warsaw, May 6, 1998
- 1998
- video, color, sound
- 1h, 3min, 7sec
For “A Visit to Edward Krasiński’s Studio” on 6 May 1998, the artist Paweł Althamer filmed curator Adam Szymczyk visiting artist Edward Krasiński in his now-legendary top-floor studio in a 1960s-era apartment block at 64 Aleja “Solidarnośći” in Warsaw. Szymczyk had been invited by EXIT ART to contribute a one-hour video to the exhibition “Transmissions: Channeling Cultural Information through the Medium of Video”, curated by Papo Colo and Jeannette Ingberman, in which curators and cultural critics were asked to present insights in their practice. At the time, Szymczyk considered his regular meetings with Krasiński essential. Althamer starts filming Szymczyk in a café near the studio, after which they move to a small store next to the apartment block to shop for some basic provisions before entering the apartment block and taking the elevator up to the top floor.
Before knocking on the door, Szymczyk tapes two sheets of paper to the wall towards the staircase that announce the title and date of the event as well as his and Althamer’s roles in the project. One can already see Krasiński’s signature blue Scotch tape running at a height of 130 cm outside of his apartment along with a life-sized black-and-white photograph of the artist with a welcoming gesture affixed to the entrance door. Inside, Szymczyk and Krasiński engage in a casual conversation at the table while having a drink and smoking cigarettes. Althamer continues systematically, if somewhat erratically, filming the apartment along the blue Scotch tape line, delineating the location with his camera as well as zooming in on objects hanging from the ceiling and placed on the floor, shelves, and tables. Photographs and contact sheets displayed in the apartment depict friends, fellow artists, and Krasiński’s family members. At one point, the camera focuses closely on Krasiński’s face before going on to scan various utensils, medications, and diverse other objects arranged in an idiosyncratic order defined by Krasiński’s own rules.
Krasiński ultimately leaves the scene to take a rest, whereupon Althamer goes out onto the rooftop terrace next to the apartment to record an overhead view of the surrounding area: it is the panorama of a city rebuilt and built anew after the war including a few new high-rises put up amidst Poland’s political transformation and the ensuing change from a socialist to a capitalist economy, which began 5 years before this film was shot. When Szymczyk and Althamer leave the apartment, they take down the sheets of paper announcing the event and disappear into the increasingly dense afternoon traffic out on the street. W.S., A.S.
Before knocking on the door, Szymczyk tapes two sheets of paper to the wall towards the staircase that announce the title and date of the event as well as his and Althamer’s roles in the project. One can already see Krasiński’s signature blue Scotch tape running at a height of 130 cm outside of his apartment along with a life-sized black-and-white photograph of the artist with a welcoming gesture affixed to the entrance door. Inside, Szymczyk and Krasiński engage in a casual conversation at the table while having a drink and smoking cigarettes. Althamer continues systematically, if somewhat erratically, filming the apartment along the blue Scotch tape line, delineating the location with his camera as well as zooming in on objects hanging from the ceiling and placed on the floor, shelves, and tables. Photographs and contact sheets displayed in the apartment depict friends, fellow artists, and Krasiński’s family members. At one point, the camera focuses closely on Krasiński’s face before going on to scan various utensils, medications, and diverse other objects arranged in an idiosyncratic order defined by Krasiński’s own rules.
Krasiński ultimately leaves the scene to take a rest, whereupon Althamer goes out onto the rooftop terrace next to the apartment to record an overhead view of the surrounding area: it is the panorama of a city rebuilt and built anew after the war including a few new high-rises put up amidst Poland’s political transformation and the ensuing change from a socialist to a capitalist economy, which began 5 years before this film was shot. When Szymczyk and Althamer leave the apartment, they take down the sheets of paper announcing the event and disappear into the increasingly dense afternoon traffic out on the street. W.S., A.S.