2024-11-19
National Exhibition of Young Visual Arts "Against War - Against Fascism", which is colloquially known as "Arsenal", took place in 1995 in Warsaw. The event was groundbreaking for post-war Polish art, as the artists openly spoke out against the styles of Socialist Realism and Colourism.
The colloquial name of the exhibition comes from the former purpose of the edifice located at 52 Długa Street in the capital. The austere interiors of the building, with its unplastered walls and poured concrete floors, proved to be the ideal backdrop for an exhibition whose artists opposed fascism and socialist realism. The jury shortlisted 197 oil paintings, 58 sculptures and 244 graphic works for the collection. The artists, presented their own artistic explorations, often tending towards brutal expression; the leitmotif of the show was the as yet unrecovered trauma of the wartime conflagration.
The event was initiated by Jan Dziędziora, Jacek Sienicki, Janina Jasińska and Marek Oberländer.
The "Arsenal" took place at the time of the thaw following the death of Joseph Stalin (1878-1953). Yet, the people's authorities delayed until the last moment giving permission for the opening of the exhibition. The censors did not like the fact that the young artists took a stand not only against fascism but also against Stalinist terror. In the end, the exhibition took place, and to this day the reasons for the fire in one of the exhibition rooms, which took place just before the opening of the event, have not been explained.
The young, rebellious artists presented compositions at the "Arsenal'' in 1955, in which they used deformation, simplification, strong colour contrasts and considerable texture. These tendencies can be seen very well in Mark Oberländer's (1922-1978) painting entitled "Stigmatized". One could say that this work has become a symbol of the exhibition. In the painting, the viewer will see three men with bloody wounds cut into their foreheads in the shape of a six-pointed star of David.
Other very interesting works include: "Ghetto" by Izaak Celnikier, "Fire" by Waldemar Cwenarski, "Meal" by Jan Dziędziora or "AN LUNGENENTZUNDUNG GESTORBEN" (in translation: "Died from pneumonia") by Bartłomiej Kurka.