Stary Browar

The sculpture by Piotr Kurka – black and white, marble bench to sit on symbolises the state of struggle between the light and dark side of life. The figure of a raven was placed on its white part. Legend has it that anyone who strokes it will benefit from the bird’s wisdom and will be able to cope with the most difficult life problems.

Piotr Kurka – Poznanian, sculptor and lecturer at the Academy of Fine Arts in Poznań. Co-founder of the legendary group “Koło Klipsa” and winner of international scholarships such as Rockefeller Foundation and Pollock-Krasner Foundation.

Although the inspiration behind Choe U’Ram’s “Hidden Shadow of the Moon” was undoubtedly glow of a celestial body, for Poznanians the installation above the famous Chessboard is simply the “Shrimp”. The Korean’s sculpture is a kinetic construction. At certain hours it moves, resembling a breathing shellfish.

Choe U’Ram was born in Seoul, in his artistic work he invents spectacular designs, combining technological, industrial world with Asian deep respect for nature. Opertus Lunula Umbra was inspired by historic ships at the port of Liverpool, while sculptures designed by the Korean include unusual creatures from the Tokyo metro, or a street lamp-like creature from Los Angeles.

"Citta Gentile" is an installation commissioned by Stary Browar on the occasion of the opening of Art Stations Foundation. The sculptures shaped like the alphabet devised by the artist (he also uses it in other works) present the city in a metaphysical dimension: they are the urban tissue and the community that lives in it at the same time. Each of the alphabet figures has formal and ordered elements but also chaos and delicacy - like every city and its inhabitants.

Alessandro Mendini - an outstanding Italian architect, designer and artist, “maestro del design”. His works, both theoretical and works of art, form the canon of postmodern design. He consults projects for the most famous brands - from fashion through car to electronic.

"Henyo-Penyo Myomyonmyo” is a figure of a boy dressed in Moschino jeans, simply called Heniek by Stary Browar regulars, symbolising innocent, careless and happy childhood. However, it is worth knowing that the sculpture is part of a larger cycle related to the attack on Hiroshima.

Mr. - a Japanese artist and performer, former protégé of Takashi Murakami and member of his famous group Kaikai Kiki operating in Tokyo and New York. Before his works became famous he sketched his works on the back of shop receipts.

A joint work of Stary Browar’s designers - ADS Studio and the artist Adam Garnek.  The architects have created a glass block divided by several-storey, horizontal bands. Inside, there is a lighting installation that turns the façade into a shimmering, semi-translucent decoration at night.

ADS studio was founded by Piotr Berełkowski, a four-time winner of the Jan Baptiste Quadro award. The studio has been awarded many times, also for Stary Browar.

Adam Garnek is a constructor of intricate installations, machines and devices that only seemingly serve practical purposes. In his works he most often uses steel.

The bronze beer mug was designed by Wojciech Kujawski to celebrate the opening of the Passage wing of Stary Browar. Ceremonial unveiling of this unusual sculpture was associated with setting two Guinness records: it is the largest beer mug in the world and the most litres of beer were drunk from it! It is decorated with six characters and each one gives the impression of being very busy with its affairs.

Wojciech Kujawski - artist, professor of visual arts, dean and devoted pedagogue, distinguished by numerous awards. He was the only representative of Poland during the 100th anniversary of the Venice Biennale.

This work of Igor Mitoraj refers to mythology. It contains beauty and ideal proportions of the classical sculpture but also the element of anxiety typical of its creator - cracks and scratches symbolise imperfection of human nature and transience of its existence.

Igor Mitoraj - one of the most renowned Polish sculptors. His works are exhibited in many prestigious locations around the world.

This work of Igor Mitoraj is inspired by classical Greek and Renaissance sculpture. Similarly to Mitoraj’s other works, it reflects beauty of the human body with scratches, cracks, and fragmentation symbolising its imperfection and transience.

Igor Mitoraj - one of the most renowned Polish sculptors. His works are exhibited in many prestigious locations around the world.

The installation was created on the columns of the Grand Theatre in Poznań to celebrate the 750th anniversary of the city. Yellow-and-green stripes decorated its facade for a month while the work itself fit in the idea of combining painting with architecture. Currently it has a surprising location as a distinctive element of the busiest communication route in Stary Browar’s Atrium.

Leon Tarasewicz - Polish artist of Belarusian descent. One of his ideas is to bring painting beyond the boundaries of canvass and introduce it to the urban space.

The only work by Uklański presented in the public space in Poland. The main element of the installation is a huge tapestry referring to the very recognisable atmosphere of Kantor and Szajna’s theatre. The image of a “Red Dwarf” is part of the work. The content of this installation should be read through symbolic and ironic references to popular culture.

Piotr Uklański – a world-famous Polish artist, photographer and performer living and creating in New York.

Sculptures of Sylwester Ambroziak cannot be confused with works of any other artist. Exaggerated and grotesque figures with thick-hewn silhouettes, long limbs and disproportionate heads are like universal parables on human existence, dignity but also its frailty.

Sylwester Ambroziak - one of the most recognisable Polish artists, best known as the creator of large-scale wooden sculptures. His works have references to African and Amazonian culture, as well as comics.

Installation prepared especially for Blow Up Hall 5050 hotel by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer to highlight the unique character of hotel interiors became inspiration for the hotel’s name. The work consists of several plasma screens, motion sensors, cameras and computers which interact with passers-by. Thanks to this, anyone who passes by becomes a piece of art for a moment.

Rafael Lozano-Hemmer – an artist born in Mexico, famous for employing robotics and the latest technologies in his works which are located all over the world and include kinetic sculptures and the so-called environment installations.

Photograph VB 43.019 is the result of Vanessa Beecroft’s performance. Emotionless, naked women set in the gallery by the artist were observed and photographed by visitors for many hours.

Vanessa Beecroft – an Italian artist, famous for organising performances in which she engages in a dialogue with female body, discussing, among other things, its objectification.

This monumental photograph is a fragment of documentation of Vanessa Beecroft’s performance at Castello di Rivoli in Turin in 2003. The author has once again engaged in a dialogue on objectification of the female body as well as rules of exposing it that govern fashion industry and the media.

Vanessa Beecroft - an Italian artist, famous for organising performances in which she undertakes a dialogue with female body, touching upon the theme of its objectification.

The photograph combines sophisticated simplicity of composition with the aura of anxiety. The clothing is a trace of the body of a person whose fate is unknown to the viewer.

Jadwiga Sawicka - Polish painter and photographer, author of the so-called text installations, also in public spaces. Characteristic motives of her work are words and clothes.

This “portrait” of a thing is also indirectly the portrait of a person who once wore the dress. The person’s appearance is unknown but the image it evokes is extremely strong, almost palpable.

Jadwiga Sawicka - Polish painter and photographer, author of the so-called text installations, also in public spaces. Characteristic motives of her work are words and clothes.

Sensual photograph located in the Blow Up Hall 5050 hotel restaurant affects the viewer through ambiguity of colour and shape. The artist intentfully uses pink, neglected in the world of fine arts, as a symbol of pop culture, kitsch and bad taste. Here it is supposed to be the symbol of liberation, sexuality and desire, regardless of gender and sexual orientation.

Maurycy Gomulicki - painter, graphic artist, photographer, and also a curatorliving and working in Warsaw and Mexico. The motto of his art is “pleasure and delight”, he is inspired by topics that take on a completely different meaning when moved to a different cultural area.

One of the series of self-portraits of Mariko Mori. The artist, dressed up as an office worker photographed herself on a busy street while serving tea. The result is a combination of Western ideas about Japan with erotic fascinations of the Japanese themselves, which are reflected in the figure of a woman portrayed as a sexy, submissive cyborg.

Mariko Mori - a Japanese artist known for making strong references to comic books and science-fiction movies. One of Moris’s most famous installations titled “Ring: One of Nature” was presented to the public at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in 2016.

The work “Silver Arrow” depicts a fragment of the body of McLaren race car. The artist treated a decontextualized fragment of Formula 1 car as a sophisticated form resembling contemporary sculpture.

Michael Najjar - a German photographer living in Berlin, fascinated by the latest technologies and their impact on the changing world, genetics and human evolution. He uses his own computer programmes to create his works.

„San Sebastian 1” is the result of performance organised at Fundacion COFF in San Sebastian, Spain. During the event, the artist “inscribed” models into the characteristic architecture of the building.

Spencer Tunick – originator of performances with hundreds of naked volunteers. The largest performance took place in 2007 in Mexico when 18,000 naked people took part in a photographic installation.

A photograph by Patrick Tournebouf showing old volumes books from the National Archives in Paris.

Patrick Tourneboeuf - a French artist specialising in large-scale photos of interiors and urban spaces.

A photograph by Patrick Tournebouf showing endless collections of documents from the National Archives in Paris.

Patrick Tourneboeuf - a French artist specialising in large-scale photos of interiors and urban spaces.

The installation located in the lobby of Blow Up Hall 5050 hotel consists of two longitudinal, fluorescent lights which, thanks to a special drive, rotate and illuminate the interiors of the hotel lobby after dark.

Sebastian Hempel - a German artist, winner of multiple awards. He mainly creates installations in which movement as well as visual and spatial lighting effects play a special role.

Santo Amaro III" was created in 2006, at the time when the artist was exploring the subject of surreal architecture capable of adapting to existing conditions. In his photographs he combined a picture of slum, favela-type districts in Central and South America with a futuristic vision of architecture.