25 IV 1994

Zachęta Gallery,  Warszawa

during the exhibition Krakow Group 1932-1994

Description of the manifestation:

A spacious room on the first floor, the first on the left from the main hall. Paintings hang on the walls. The sculptures have been removed for the duration of the manifestation. In the center of the room lies an enlarged glove made of thick gray canvas. It is a mitten, approximately 35 cm long and 25 cm wide. A current issue of the daily newspaper Rzeczpospolita protrudes from the glove. A table stands next to it, with a bottle of cognac and glasses. Chairs for the audience are arranged in a circle around the setup.

Action: The gathered audience waits for the manifestation to begin. A rumbling sound is heard from the adjacent room. After a moment, the artist appears, rolling a thick tree stump in front of him.

Ms. Anda Rottenberg, director of the Zachęta Gallery, speaks first. The artist pauses and waits for her to finish. He is naked, with a rope noose around his neck, and his penis is painted red and white. When the speech ends, he rolls the tree stump with a loud thud into the center of the hall. He stands it upright; a large inscription reading RZECZ NIEPOSPOLITA (UNCOMMON THING) becomes visible on it.

He picks up the glove and declares that he accepts the challenge it symbolizes. He says that as a citizen of the Third Polish Republic, he fully accepts democracy, but democracy is only a necessary condition for free activity. It creates possibilities, but does not guarantee the existence of any values. The artist removes the newspaper from the glove and states that it is not what is common, but what is special and uncommon, that becomes a value worthy of respect and protection. He places the empty glove on the tree trunk and spreads the newspaper over it. He removes the rope from his neck, inserts a sheet of newspaper into the loop, and tightens the noose. He places the rope “with wings” on the tree trunk, on top of the glove. He then takes green paint from the table and paints the letter S on the front of his body.

He unscrews the bottle, pours cognac into several glasses, and paints a black cross on his back. He continues, saying that only what is special and uncommon becomes a component of a national cultural identity. The partitioning powers and later occupiers understood this well. They flattered and indulged what was commonplace, but ruthlessly fought and destroyed what was uncommon. Hence the massacre in Katyń, the mass deportations, the persecution of scholars and professors… Only a clearly articulated national cultural identity can secure partnership in international relations. What is common may be received even hospitably, as exotic folklore, but it has no chance of being treated as an equal partner. As he speaks, the artist alternately paints letters on his body, pours cognac, and ties sheets of the newspaper into successive knots.

More and more wings protrude from the rope. He explains that today, the threat to our cultural identity comes not from invaders or occupation, but from the confusion within the consciousness of Poles themselves. This confusion leads to inversion – an overturning of the fundamental hierarchy of values. Everything negotiable becomes important, at the expense of what is inalienable. Almost in defiance of these words, the word SENS (MEANING) appears on his body, formed from green letters. The artist then ties the rope so that it forms a wreath decorated with pages of Rzeczpospolita (Common Thing). He places it over his head and shoulders. On the glove lying atop the tree trunk, he signs his name in green and writes the current date. He then takes the glove in his hands and climbs onto the tree trunk. Wearing the wreath, with the green inscription SENS (MEANING) on his body and his penis painted red and white, he stands on the stump and presents the audience with the work titled Uncommon Thing.

The title is written on the trunk. From this height, he declares that – on behalf of artists, and in defense of the inalienable values that constitute national cultural identity – he challenges the authorities of the Third Polish Republic and Polish patronage. At this moment, the glove falls to the floor of the Zachęta Gallery. The author steps down from the plinth, removes the wreath from his shoulders, and places it on the tree trunk. Finally, he invites those gathered to drink cognac.

Komentarz autorski (unfortunately only in Polish):

Myślę, że nie było to działanie z premedytacją, ale raczej zbieg okoliczności, że równocześnie w ten sam dzień, o tej samej godzinie, w Centrum Sztuki w Al. Ujazdowskich odbyło się otwarcie wystawy i spotkanie z Kosuthem i Kabakowem. W płaszczyźnie symbolicznej taka konfrontacja w tym samym mieście i tym samym czasie była dla mnie czymś niezwykłym, ze względu na mój kilkudziesięcioletni spór z konceptualizmem jako duchampowską spuścizną. W płaszczyźnie konkretnej zderzenie to było dla mnie przykre, ponieważ “cała snobistyczna Warszawa” pobiegła do Kosutha. Chociaż ponad 80 osób, poważnej i młodej publiczności, było w Zachęcie. Nawiasem mówiąc środowisko Centrum jest przesiąknięte snobizmem w stopniu całkowitej impregnacji. Mimo, że dokonałem tam dwóch manifestacji w obecności niezwykle licznej publiczności oraz urządziłem dużą, indywidualną wystawę, w “Obiegu”, piśmie wydawanym przez Centrum, nie ukazało się ani jedno zdanie na ten temat. Stąd przypuszczam, że celowo nie skorygowano terminów imprez, bo między obiema instytucjami panuje bardzo dobra komitywa. Smutne, ponieważ wiele osób usprawiedliwiało przede mną woją nieobecność Kosuthem. Choć Kosuth od wielu lat nie trudzi się twórczością. Raczej jego zabiegi dotyczą utrzymania raz zdobytego prestiżu.