13 III 1979

Art-Forum Gallery, Łódź

Manifestation description:

In the exhibition hall there are two white cubes of about 80 centimeters high. They are situated several meters away from each other. On the opposite walls there are inscriptions: EXTERNAL ALTAR and INTERNAL ALTAR. On the “ External Altar” rest a bundle of sheets of gray paper and some cups of paint. In the middle of the room there is a gray sheet with the inscription PHILOSOPHICAL MASS on the floor. The artist enters naked. Around his neck hangs a copy of a newspaper. It is the weekly “Culture”. He approaches the “External Altar.” With a brush dipped in green paint he puts his signature on the sheet of paper. Immediately, however, with a second brush, dipped in black paint, he crosses out this signature with a horizontal line. The sheet of paper is hung on the wall by the gallery staff. The action gets repeated. Eventually the gallery walls are covered  with the sheets of paper on which the green signature is crossed out with the black line. Then the artist takes off  “Culture” hanging around his neck, crumples it and sets it on fire on the “ External Altar”. The newspaper burns on a white box. Meanwhile the artist paints the soles of his feet with green paint and, leaving his footprints on the floor, walks to the second box with the inscription “INTERNAL ALTAR. There he paints the word SPIRIT on his body, and puts his signature on the “ INTERNAL Altar.” He turns over the sheet lying in the middle of the gallery. The inscription EXHIBITION appears. The artist leaves the room.

Photo by Ryszard Łucyszyn