ATTENTION: PAINTING!
The eleventh edition of the Geppert Competition is entitled “Attention: Painting!”. Is it a warning or rather an attempt to draw attention? As a matter of fact, both. We warn against the jarring effect of painting, which may really get under your skin. At the same time, we require attention because we know this medium deserves it. We remind you about its rudimentary position in the history of art, but bearing in mind the changes it keeps undergoing, we do not establish hierarchies in reference to other areas or give precedence to painting over other disciplines. We just put it in the spotlight.
This time we do not base our programme on the question of the future of painting in relation to other media, its supposedly worn-out formula or constantly shifting boundaries. The plurality of art, lack of clear-cut divisions and its generic diffusion are all beyond question, yet this fact does not mean that painting is in danger. Rather than worried about its future, we are quite confident that painting is actually in good condition. In fact, it is doing exceptionally well. Proof? Artists are still painting, experimenting and exhibiting their works; curators organize exhibitions and competitions; gallery owners keep trading in paintings. There is plenty to choose from, and it appears that “The Triumph of Painting” is not only the title of an important show from a few years back, in which Charles Saatchi announced the return of the discipline. It is a fact. We just try to show the different faces of painting.
As curators, we have the following aims: to search, select, assess and present what is interesting in young Polish painting. But above all, we show the process of arriving at the final result, i.e. the exhibition, throughout all the stages of selection, which ends in choosing and rewarding the best artists.
The previous editions of the competition often asked questions – about the forms which painting tends to assume in the modern times, how it may be defined and where to delineate its limits in relation to other arts. As a result, we know that its direction tends to be changeable and painting itself has no frames. We know that today’s painters do not necessarily do what their predecessors a century ago did. Nowadays, they can paint whatever they like and in whichever way they choose, using any means and either ignoring the classic principles of “a good picture” or, conversely, celebrating them. And as long as they define themselves that way, they are still painters and what they do is still painting.
What we intend to do is bring painting closer to the viewers by encouraging them to experience and understand it more deeply. We are interested in the existence of a set of instruments allowing a judgment of the medium, assessing its value in the times of a dynamically developing artistic reality. The evaluation of competition works is not always the same thing as assessing paintings. The crisis of art criticism has been discussed for years: the classic principles serving as points of reference have long been devalued, old notions have been verified and redefined. And no wonder – the traditional artistic values often fail to match the polyphonic and unlimited character of art. However, undemocratic as it may appear, evaluating art is necessary. Without it, art will be just a happy-go-lucky, chaotic activity. Using the results of our predecessors’ work, as well as conclusions drawn from long discussions following the previous editions, this time we want to avoid the question “Is it still painting?” and instead ask another – “Why is this painting good?” The necessity to find an appropriate formula of this year’s event has therefore become apparent.
The 11th Geppert Competition is a testing ground for several novelties. The May symposium, its regular feature, will gather a group of eighteen experts (artists, art teachers and theoreticians) from the largest artistic centres in Poland, each presenting a maximum of three most interesting young painters. The curators of the competition – rather than experts, as was the practice before – undertake the difficult task of preliminary selection. Together with the group of nominated artists, they set up an exhibition at the Awangarda Gallery. Next, members of the International Jury choose the best artists.
One of the results of the symposium will be the publication of a unique material base of the young Polish painters who were granted the privilege of participating in the competition. It is also a new idea – in the past, only experts had access to the full set of materials, and one of our intentions this year is to publicise this exceptional know-how. The post-symposium materials, in turn, will deal with the issue of judging a piece of painting, its evaluation and methods of using contemporary critical tools to assess this traditional but dynamic and constantly redefined artistic genre. The exhibition will be accompanied by a catalogue presenting works qualified for the competition. Both publications will contain rich text material which reveals the behind-the-scenes work of experts, curators and jurors. They will include the justifications, arguments and analyses which clarify the reasons for particular choices and decisions.
We are aware of the fact that some of the problems we face may be complicated, if not impossible to solve. We are far from claiming absolute power of judgement and realize that it is unrealistic to please everyone, no matter how hard we work. By definition, the competition is undemocratic, its results tend to depend on a number of factors, and lack of access to the actual reasons our experts, jurors or curators have for their selection decisions may cause doubts and discussions. Many people are bound to be disappointed with choices made at every stage of the undertaking. However, let us appreciate the opportunity that we are about to have – getting to know with the new talents of the Polish painting scene. After all, isn’t good art what the whole thing is about?
Curators of the 11th Geppert Competition
