In workshop of Apelles XII

Three photographs in the collection of the National Museum in Szczecin, entitled W pracowni Apellesa XI, XII, XIII constitute a part of Mikołaj Smoczyński's best-known work – The Secret Performance (1983–1993). This series was inspired by his Double Object, which was created as an expression of his ‘attempts to realise painting’ using the tools afforded by contemporary art. Using his paintings, disassembled into parts, Smoczyński created two spatial forms. After moving them to the studio of the Artistic Education Institute in Lublin, he discovered new possibilities for his art, as well as analysis of painting. He began experimenting with photography using various objects, taking long exposure photographs while moving the objects in what he called performances for a single person. Later, Smoczyński gave up on objects, as his works became more and more ingrained in the spaces, for which and in which they were created. Since the 1990s, he has created and documented his architectural spatial interventions – ephemeral installations in gallery spaces. Black and white photography became one of the most important media used by Smoczyński, which he combined with his spatial pieces. Smoczyński’s work, despite minimalism of the means of expression, is visually refined and ideologically powerful. The metaphysics and mysticism of the image and painting were extremely important to his work. This is evidenced by his texts, recording his thoughts accompanying the preparation of a given installation and analytical-critical comments on his works written down after the realisations. The title W pracowni Apellesa suggests a reference to the traditional depictions of the artist’s studio, often filled with paintings (a painting within a painting), while reminding of the ancient canon in art, understood as an objective truth which the artist managed to discover.

Marlena Chybowska-Butler