Artists: Oskar Dawicki, Igor Krenz, Łukasz Skąpski, Wojciech Niedzielko
12 March–10 April 2011
Opening:
11 March 2011 at 7:00 pm
organization and production: BWA Wrocław
www.bwa.wroc.pl
curator / exhibition design: Joanna Zielińska
collaboration: Agnieszka Pindera
contact: Anna Mituś, a.mitus [at] bwa.wroc.pl
Azorro’s jokes are still amusing despite changing contexts. The “myth” about the origin of the group says that they met in Krakow: this name derives from joining Zorro and Azorek (a common name for a dog in Poland). The first film Bardzo nam się podoba / We like it a lot (2000) was shot in Warsaw.
Azorro appeared when the leading subject to be discussed in Poland was Dorota Nieznalska’s critical art and her trial. They usually do not prepare any scripts, they work spontaneously according to a simple rule—most of Azorro’s productions are debates about current problems in art. They create low-budget films that employ a “home video” aesthetic. The artists ask seemingly naive questions—has the art finished ? (The End of Art), they wonder what the perfect or ideal sculpture looks like and what it should be (Ideal sculpture), and what topic has not yet been done (Everything Has Been Done). They often use colloquial language, they play with conventions, they sneer at the art world, they undermine the rules and at the same time they are the super heroes and celebrities of the art world.
A comprehensive and critical look at Azorro’s art is the aim of this retrospective. The Last Movie (2010) presented in the exhibition reveals the behind-the-scenes work in the group, and demythologizes Azorro. The timeline which describes the group’s history is the important part of the exhibition. It is connected with the collection of artifacts from Azorro’s films.
The characteristic of their art is emphasized by the arrangement of the exhibition’s design and uses material such as MDF plates and other ephemeral items. The exhibition reveals and points towards some common threads for their art, and investigates the strategies involved and presents the detremental aspects of working as a group. At least half of the Azorro group openly admit that the group exhausted themselves and that their long-time collaboration broke down.
The Last Show by Azorro, (also referred to sometimes as supergroup) in Awangarda Gallery in Wroclaw is the next comprehensive presentation of the artists’ output, who have worked together since 2001. The previous ones were Ideal Exhibition ( CoCA, Toruń), As good as it gets (Arsenal Gallery, Białystok) and The Last Show 1 (Goldex Poldex, Krakow). Azorro Group is well known in Poland and abroad.
Films presented at the exhibition:
Koniec sztuki / The End of Art
Propozycja / Proposal
Idealna rzeźba / Ideal sculpture
Bardzo nam się podoba / We like it a lot
Wszystko już było / Everything Has Been Done
Rodzina / The Family
Hic et nunc
Portret z kuratorem w tle / Portrait with a Curator
Idealna wystawa / Ideal exhibition
Niech się dzieje co chce / Whatever
Ostatni film / TheLast Movie
Azorro – a group of important Polish artists after 2000.
The group was created in 2001 by Oskar Dawicki, Igor Krenz, Wojciech Niedzielko and Łukasz Skąpski, the artists are from different generations and from different backgrounds. Simultaneously with films realized in the group, the artists continue individual work in various media. As Azorro they are the authors of several auto-thematic films realized as amateur productions in which they performed. In a scoffing way they presented the art world and the mechanisms which rule it. They counterpoised critical art of the last decade, by using the convention of “masculine overaction” they referred to fineness and pretentiousness of the discussion about art, stereotypes of the avant-garde artist, and real influence of institutional “mechanisms” and the phenomenon of collectivity and the power of films.
