BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

BOŻENNA BISKUPSKA was born in Warsaw in 1952. She studied painting in the State Higher School of Plastic Arts in Poznań from 1970 to 1972,
and in the Fine Arts Academy in Warsaw from 1972 to 1976. She obtained her degree with a distinction in professor Tadeusz Dominik's workroom in 1976.
She practices painting and sculpting. She won the first prize on the 4th International Biennal Exhibition of Weaving Miniature, Savaria Museum, Shombathely, Hungary in 1982. In 1984 she was granted a two-year Ministry of Culture and Art scholarship, in 1986 she won the First Grade Prize of Stanisław Wyspiański  for painting and sculpting.
She represented Poland on the 61st Biennal Art Exhibition in Venice (1984) and on the 14th International Biennal of Small Bronze Sculptures in Padua (1986).
Works in the collections of: The Art Museum in Łódź, The State Museum of Oświęcim-Brzezinka, The National Museum in Kielce, The National Museum in Gdańsk, The Museum of Lubuski Region in Zielona Góra, The History-Etnography Museum in Chojnice, The Middle Nadodrze Museum in
Świdnica, The Warmia and Mazury Museum in Olsztyn, The Studio Gallery in Warsaw,
The SBWA Gallery in Warsaw, BWA in Opole,  The Museum in Shombathely (Hungary),
The Humboldt University in Berlin, The Polish Museum in Chicago, The International Monetary Fund in Washington,  PKO S.A. Bank, NFOŚiGW in Warsaw and in private collections in the country and abroad.

   … about Bożenna's most recent realizations

Since the birth of The One-legged in 1987, a distinct process has formed in her production. It is a process of recording herself, not in the categories of emotion, but rather reflection. But doesn't the following of the reflections in their variability that advances with the flow of time become the strongest emotion itself? Both the realizations created before the The One-legged, as well as the fabrics of the 70's and the sculptures of the 80's, in spite of a clearly visible searching period, already specify those artist's features that - consequently developed - lead to the full harmonization of her artistic activity. First and foremost, it is independence from the current fashion and from pressure of the searching generation of the artists of this period. Her willingness, as she puts
it herself, "to come to the crux of the problem" absorbs her entirely. And just like in molecular physics "the crux of the problem" meets the barrier resulting from the Indeterminacy Principle, then in Art, a problem stated once, remains an inexhaustible source of self-realization, as if against the obvious. The more of it, the problem for the artist being the transience. This is why all aspects of her earlier sculpture and fabric works were contained in the One-legged-sculpture, next in the One-legged-symbol and the One-legged-sign. Another feature of Bożenna's earlier production, which still remains unchanged, and which was extremely important for retaining the artist's individuality, was the literally superhuman work of physical struggle with the matter.
Both in fabric as well as in sculpture, work with large formats, weight and the natural resistance of the material, allowed the artist to discover herself in a tedious, almost mystic effort, which assured her that she was making artistically right decisions. Thus, the One-legged-sign, placed on her subsequent works, became the symbol of huge amounts of energy that are merely a laconic record in the transience process.Since this moment, Bożenna's works have been recognized as exceptionally personal. Carrying no narrativeness, they become only the record of emotions  and artistic considerations in the simpliest forms. This especially applies to the works of the "demarcation of an image" series. The period, which began in 1995, defined itself previously by
successive projects. The first of them were painting realizations of the 1989  1993 period, where the geometrical abstraction formed a record of distinct brush traces in the surface quality. Next, it was mainly the evolution of a human personage in the direction of a sign, where the painting solutions remained similar to the ones described above. These large-format paintings reflected the artist's diminishing interest in struggle with the painting material and an increasing need for the synthesis of the record. The theme defining process included in the "demarcation of an image" does not exclude the search within the area of sculpture, it simultaneously arranges the space on the basis of intereactions of forms. A significant piece is a 1991 realization, with an openwork cage made of rods, in which a sculpture is placed. The cage, previously signalled in the paint works as a box, will become here an important element-sign for the subsequent series "the cage series". From today's perspective, it is hard not to give this form a certain symbol of restriction and condensation of
employed artistic means in order to achieve the ultimate clarity of expression as well as the symbol of confinement and isolation from external factors that disperse the thoughts and the idea constituting Bożenna's artistic credo. "Demarcation of an image" began with a series of drawings in pencil and oil paint on paper and canvas. The one-legged figure and the cage, having achieved a meaningful value in the previous period, become here merely a record, a sign, losing the legibility of form in the multiplied record. The gesture,which deprives them of definition, gains a character of an individual hand, leaving to the emotions only a vague record of imperfection of every move of the hand and the nonchalance confined in milimeters. Such a description of the creation process allows Bożenna to start her search anew. The language of the statement begins to penetrate the issues it utilised in former realizations. The material and the space. In the second half of the 90's,
very significant works emerged. "Tectonics"  a sculpture work performed in concrete, composed of 49 figurines of the one-legged placed on a concreteblock. Cast in bronze, these figures form a record of the touch, shaping the prepared molds in wax. Duplicated and creating a rythmical record, they transform, however, the block into an abstract form. The certainty arising from the conviction of the value of the decisions made allows the artist to symbolically widen the space determined by te cage. She arranges the whole exhibition rooms by building carpets of concrete slabs, or walls, whosehorizontal and rhythmical configuration suggests the possibility of annexing to infinity. In a symbolic cage she locks photographic plates, which are the document-register of the created slabs that imply the record of the indeterminacy of time. And it is the time, understood as a process, which is the most vital issue that she noticed in the consequence of her own artistic way, and which, to some extent, emerged by itself to meet her artistic statement. The idea of "demarcation of an image" finds an exceptional form here.The sterile white record in oil paint on paper or on grounded canvas, disregarding all painting issues and problems, becomes the intimacy of time. Transience as a pejoratively defined process, which is most often associated withruthlessness, reveals its mastery and delicacy, giving subtle changes in oil color in the course of time. The cardboard or stretcher format constitutes the completion of a process, which will last forever in an almost beautiful form. However, Bożenna does not intend to remain only the cause of the commencedphenomena. An author with such temperament and courage wants to create, learn and determine the end as well. She wants to bear the responsibility for it. That is why, at the same time oil paintings are created, in which, by means of color, she creates abstract landscapes of sensitivity. These paintings
named "cage series", are not linked by theme with the previously described way. They come into existence from an impulse and confine emotions in a painting treated, refined cage. These pictures are unexpected and do not let Bożenna confine herself in it. Even if the cage is aknowledged, beautifuland valuable, like her art  a cage, nevertheless.                                                     

 INDYVIDUAL EXHIBITIONS (CHOICE)

1978  A single work exhibition, The Artist House, Warsaw;
1979  Fabric exhibition, BWA, Rzeszów;
1980  Exhibition of fabrics, sculptures and Photography documentation, The Studio Gallery, Warsaw;
1981  Participation of sculptures in the "Spoon River Stones", Stara Prochownia Theater, Warsaw;
1982  Sculpture exhibition, The Middle Nadodrze Museum in Świdnic;
1985  Sculpture exhibition, The Warmia i Mazury Museum, Olsztyn, division "Zamek" Gallery in Reszel;
1986  Painting and sculpture, Zachęta, Warsaw;
1986  Sculpture exhibition, The National Oświęcim-Brzezinka Museum;
1987  Painting and drawing, Polish Theater, Warsaw;
1988  Painting and sculpture, The Sculpture Gallery, Warsaw;
1988  Painting and sculpture, BWA, Opole;
1988  Painting and sculpture, The Museum of Lubuski Region, Zielona Góra;
1988  Painting and sculpture, The National

Museum, Kielce;
1990  Sculpture, drawing, BWA, Zamość;
1991  Painting and sculpture, AmTurm Gallery, Warsaw;
1992  Painting and sculpture, Anders Gallery, Warsaw;
1993  Installation, the artist's workroom, Warsaw;
1993  Participation of sculptures in the "Ka Ba Kai Re - animations" performance LLT Videotheater Poza, The Museum of Warmia and Mazury, Olsztyn, division "Zamek" Gallery in Reszel;
1993  Painting, Gate Gallery, Karlsruhe, Germany;
1994  Participation of sculptures in the "Ka Ba Kai Re - animations" performance LLT Videotheater Poza, Erfurt, Warsaw;
1994  Painting and sculpture, The International Monetary Fund, Washington;
1995  Relationships, Manhattan Gallery, Łódź;
1995  Painting and sculpture, The Polish Museum in America, Chicago;
1996  Painting and sculpture, The Museum of Lubuski Region, Zielona Góra;
1998  Tectonics, sculpture and drawing, The National Museum in Gdańsk, Modern Art Gallery, Opatów, Palace Gdańsk-Oliwa;
1998  Works 1996-1998 Polish Sculpture Center, Orońsko;
1999  Laying out the picture, The Museum of Warmia and Mazury, Olsztyn, divison "Zamek" Gallery in Reszel;
1999  Demarcation of an image, BWA Wrocław;
2001  Relations, Galeria Renes'ans, Warsaw.
2001  Relations, Galeria Renes'ans, Poznań. 

GROUP EXHIBITIONS (CHOICE)

1976  11th Polish Nationwide Art Exhibition of the Young, Sopot (distinction);
1976  Polish Art from Warsaw, Palace Kirke, Copenhagen;
1977  New Polish Art, Blois, Nevers, France;
1977  4th Polish Nationwide Creators Meeting, BWA Poznań;
1977  Art Exhibition of the Young, "CDN", Warsaw;
1979  The presence of Art, KMPiK Nowy Świat, Warsaw;
1980  Trials, BWA Toruń;
1981  7th Art Festival, Zachęta, Warsaw (2nd Prize);
1982  4th International Biennal Exhibition of Weaving Miniature, Savaria Museum, Szombathely, Hungary (1st Prize);
1984  61st Biennal Exhibition of Art, The Polish Pavilion, Venice, Italy;
1984  5th International Biennal Exhibition of Weaving Miniature, Savaria Museum, Szombathley, Hungary (1st Prize);
1984  The Exhibition of Collections of Polish Art Galleries, The Regional Museum, Chojnice;
1984  Small is Beautiful, The Zapiecek Gallery, Warsaw;
1985  The Exhibition of Paintings and Graphics of Warsaw Artists, Zachęta, Warsaw;
1986  Human life  Earth's Fate, Zachęta, Warsaw;
1986  The International Exhibition of Weaving Miniature, Luxemburg;
1986  14th International Biennal Exhibition of Small Bronze Sculptures, Padua, Italy;
1989  No More, Dsseldorf, Germany;
1994  Together  In life and in art, The Zapiecek Gallery, Warsaw;
1995  Hommage a Stażewski, Chicago, USA;
1995  Voices and Pictures, envoronment, the "Ka Ba Kai Re  animations" performance LLT Videotheater Poza, The Royal Castle, Warsaw; 1995  A woman's view, The World Bank, Washington, USA;
1996  A portrait  an equivocal figure. Painting and sculputre from the collection of the Art Museum in Łódz, Gniezno;
1996  Together  In life and in art, The Zapiecek Gallery, Warsaw;
1997  The Polish Art, Atlanta, USA;
1999  The figure in Polish sculpture 19th  20th., Zachęta, Warsaw;
1999  Transcultural visions. The Xawery Dunikowski Museum, Królikarnia, Warszawa;
2000  Unto your neighbor 2000, The Studio Gallery, Warsaw; The Museum of the Gdańsk Town History, Gdańsk; The Archdiocese Museum, Wrocław; The Art Gallery Artemis, Cracow; Wanda Siemaszkowska Theater, Rzeszów;
2000  Salon 2000, Supraśl;
2000  Nord Art 2000, Rendsburg, Bdelsdorf.

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