Agata Kus
Born in 1987 in Krosno. Lives and works in Cracow. Graduate in painting from the Academy of Fine Arts in Cracow (diploma in 2012, Prof. Leszek Misiak’s studio). Doctoral student at Cracow’s ASP. Deals in painting, textile, drawing, collage, creating spatial objects and video. Member of the Kuku Kuku group.
The works of Agata Kus abound in motifs of suffering connected with womanhood. Adolescence, initiation, maternity – they all leave traces of blood, but those wounds also become sources which pour out treasures and precious stones. Femininity and biology are associated with the animal instinct, the propelling force of procreation, the age-long drive all representatives of the living world are subject to. The artist juxtaposes the image of a woman or girl with images belonging to the animal realm: the she-cat, the bitch, the vixen, the doe. In this way, she creates unusual tension accompanying the act of watching her paintings and videos (e.g. the hypnotising film “Mother” presented at the “Rings of Saturn” exhibition in the former Bellestrem Palace during the 15th WRO Media Art Biennale).
Adolescence and reaching adulthood is a period of several, sometimes a dozen or so years when a girl transforms into a woman. The process is not only marked with joy and pride, but also fear, anxiety, concern. It is the time of first love and broken hearts, fascination with new opportunities and new roles. The artist expresses all those emotions in a very interesting form, in which gloominess mixes with beauty. She also has a sense of humour, which often counterbalances the poignant messages.
One of the symbols of maternity is the Capitoline Wolf, both a tender, nursing mother and a monster devouring her own offspring. Also, the bitch as a negative figure, a term so often used by men to express their disapproval of women and some of their behaviours, gains a literal form here, often in shocking combinations.
Oil paintings dominate in Agata Kus’ portfolio, a technique which the artist has mastered superbly, for example in the fur texture, an effect she achieves through purely painting means. The artist is equally skilful in her use of drawing (her lacework drawn on fabric or tracing paper, sometimes blended with real lace rim, is admirable) as well as installations and videos.
Agata Smalcerz
