Ryszard Wasko

CONTACT: redsea@irys.infocentrum.com

Biography

Artist, curator, and organizer, Ryszard Wasko has worked in multimedia, including photography, film, video, installation, painting, and drawing. In the 1970s, Wasko came to prominence as a conceptual artist in the 1970s. During that time, he studied at the Academy of Film, TV and Theatre in Lodz, Poland and was a member of Workshop, an avant-garde collective of painters, filmmakers, critics, poets, philosophers and scientists, working with experimental film and multimedia. Beginning In 1981 in Lodz, Wasko initiated and organized Construction in Process, a series of exhibitions featuring works of art created on site. Artists who are invited to participate in Construction in Process invite in turn, another group of participants, giving the project a dynamic, open character. Construction in Process has taken place in several countries, including Poland, Germany, and Israel.

In the 1980s, Wasko received a DAAD Fellowship in Berlin among other residencies. He exhibited and lectured extensively in Europe. Wasko returned to Poland in 1989 and founded The International Artists’ Museum in Lodz. It has since developed into a worldwide network of locally run art centers, linking artists and intellectuals from diverse backgrounds, locations, and disciplines. In recent years, the Museum has organized and sponsored over 60 major international events, exhibitions, meetings, panels, concerts, readings, and projects focusing on art, culture, borders, community, and identity. Wasko lives and works in Lodz, Poland. His art has been shown in Europe, the United States, Australia, and Israel. Recent solo exhibitions include Nasty Bedtime Stories, Galeria 86, Lodz, 2003, Bedtime Stories, Center for the Arts, Orensanz Foundation, New York, 2002, Herzeliya Gallery, Herzeliya, Israel, 2001, and Wschodnia Gallery, Lodz, 2001.

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Activity    
2006   Creates the Construction in Process-Museum in Lodz, Poland
2004-05 Professor at the Valand School of Fine Arts in Göteborg, Sweden.
2004   Initiates and co-curates the first Lodz Biennale 2004.
2001  

Curates Markers, an international exhibition of works by artists and poets for the Venice Biennale, Italy.

2000   Organizes international art event Construction in Process VII: This earth is a flower in Bydgoszcz, Poland. Lectures at Brandeis University, USA, and the Art Academy in Lodz, Poland.
1998   Curates international exhibition Construction in Process VI: The Bridge, Melbourne, Australia.
1997-99   President of the International Artists Forum (IKG) in Cologne, Germany.
1995   Initiates international art event Construction in Process V: Co-existence, in the Negev desert, Israel.
1994-97  

Artist in residence at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, the Art-OMI, New York, among others.

1993   Organizes international exhibition Construction in Process IV: My home is your home in Lodz, Poland.
1990-92   Program Director at the P.S.1 Museum and Institute of Contemporary Art, New York.
1989   Initiates Construction in Process III: Back in Lodz. Sets up the International Artists’ Museum in Lodz, Poland. Branches of the Artists' Museum exist in New York, Tel-Aviv, Berlin, Paris, Cardiff and Melbourne.
1985   Curates Construction in Process II: Prozess und Konstruktion in Munich. Also organizes the second collection of Construction in Process, the Munich Collection.
1983–1990   Gives lectures at art schools around Europe, including Academy of Art, Dusseldorf, Offenbach School of Art, Hochschule der Künste in Berlin and Essen, among others.
1982-83   Under martial law in Poland, initiates and organizes a network of underground galleries in Lodz and Warsaw. Gives lectures and publishes a number of critical texts on art. Presents lectures and takes part in nummerous international exhibitions.
1981   Originates and organizes the international exhibition, Construction in Process in Lodz. It is the largest independent exhibition of contemporary art ever organized in Poland. Organizes The Solidarity Collection, works by international artists created for the Construction in Process event.
1979   Sets up Archives of Contemporary Thought, a forum for symposia and art events, Lodz, Poland.
1970–1983   Lecturer in the departments of experimental media and photography at the Academy of Film, Television and Theatre, Lodz, Poland.
1970-76   Member of “Workshop of the Film Form”, one of the most important artsitic groups in Poland in the 70s. “Warsztat Formy Filmowej” was a multimedia group of painters, filmmakers, poets, engaged in experimental art.

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Selected one-man-shows:

2009  

Contemporary Portrait, Haus am Lützowplatz, Berlin

2008  

Ryszard Wasko, Lodz – Berlin; works 1971-1996, Museum of History of the City of Lodz, Lodz
Ryszard Wasko, Cut up Portrait and etc., Contemporary Art Gallery Senatorska ART+on, Warsaw

2007  

N.N. Portret Współczesny, Galeria 86, Lodz
So What?, Lodz Art Center, Lodz

2006  

TV Stories, Lodz Biennale 2006, Lodz
I am telling you a secret, Galeria Signum, Poznan

2005  

I am telling you a secret, Galeria Wschodnia, Lodz
Nasty Bedtime Stories, Galeria Fizek, Poznan

2003  

Nasty Bedtime Stories, Galeria 86, Lodz
Email Paintings, Center for the Arts, New York

2001  

Small Retrospective, Galeria 86, Lodz
Breaking News, Herzeliya Gallery, Herzeliya
Breaking News, Galeria Wschodnia, Lodz
Intimate pictures, Galeria Wschodnia, Lodz

2000  

Ryszard Wasko, Many H Gallery, Tel Aviv
Filmshow, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA

1997  

Small Rose Garden, International Artist's Museum, Lodz

1995   Ryszard Wasko. Retrospection 1970-1990 (photography, film, video), Galeria FF, Lodz
1993   Meal for the Rich & Poor, Construction in Process IV, Galeria Wschodnia, Lodz
1991   My Flowers are Fruits, Construction in Process III, Galeria Wschodnia, Lodz
Ryszard Wasko, Galeria Labirynt 2, Biuro Wystaw Artystycznych, Lublin
New Works, Galerie André Joliet, Duisburg
1987  

Homage for the Street, Ruine der Künste, Berlin

1986  

Ryszard Wasko, Neuer Berliner Kunstverein, Berlin

1984  

Ryszard Wasko, Brigitte March Galerie, Stuttgart
Ryszard Wasko, Kunstverein, Kassel
Ryszard Wasko, Hoffman Galerie, Friedberg

1982-83  

Filmshow and lectures, Slade School of Art, London & St. Martin’s School of Art, Wimbledon & School of Printing, Camberwell College London & others

1981  

Small Retrospective, Museum Folkwang, Essen
Ryszard Wasko - Hypothetical photography, Galerie “m”, Bochum

1979  

Ryszard Wasko, Galeria Ślad, Lodz
Ryszard Wasko, Academy of Fine Arts and Design, Enschede

1976  

Ryszard Wasko, Galerie “m”, Bochum

1975  

Ryszard Wasko, Galeria Remont, Warsaw

1974  

Filmshow, Cinémathèque Royal de Belgique, Bruxelles

1972   Remont Gallery, Warsaw
1972  

Ryszard Wasko. Photography, Filmschool, Lodz

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Selected Group Exhibitions
2009  

9. Era New Horizons, International Film Festival, Wroclaw
Paris Photo
, Carrousel du Louvre, Paris
See This Sound, Kunstmuseum, Linz

2008  

Multikino, Cinepour Choice Film Festival - Tranzitdisplay, Prague
Time is always now, “m” Galerie, Bochum
C.D.N., Festival of Dialogue of 4 Cultures, Lodz
Mediations Biennale, Poznan
1,2,3…Avant-Gardes, Tate Modern Gallery, London
Yes,No? Other options, Art Sheffield 08, Sheffield
E-flux Video Rental, Centro de Arte Moderna José de Azeredo Perdigão, Lisbon
Videozone 4, International Video-Art Biennial, Tel Aviv

2007  

The Optical Edge, Pratt Manhattan Gallery, New York
Tents, Venice Biennale - Synagogue, Venice
1,2,3... Vanguardias. El arte como arte contextual, Sala Rekalde, Bilbao
Asteism. Joke and authority, CSW Center for Contemporary Art Zamek Ujazdowski & Program Gallery, Warsaw
e-flux video rental, Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts, Cambridge, MA
Fotofestiwal 07, Lodz Art Center, Lodz
Workshop of the Film Form (Warsztat Formy Filmowej), Galeria Pauza, Cracow

2006  

Image/Text, Tate Modern Gallery, London
Analogue: Pioneering Artists’ Video from Poland, Tate Modern Gallery, London
Painting. Fijałkowski, Leder, Wasko, Galeria 86, Lodz & Galeria Signum, Poznan
Cafe Karawania, Büro Schwimmer, Berlin
Re-Wizja, Galeria Sztuki Mediów ASP, Warsaw

2005  

Open Systems, Tate Modern Gallery, London
Fotographie konkret, Museum im Kulturspeicher, Wurzburg
e-flux video rental, The Moore Space, Miami
Grenzüberschreitung, Galerie “m” Bochum, Bochum
e-flux video rental, Portikus, Frankfurt/Main

2004  

Biennale of Polish Art, Lodz Biennale 2004, Lodz
Intermezzo IV, Emerson Gallery, Berlin
The Workshop of the Film Form (1970-1977), Electronic Arts Intermix, New York
Papier, Das Material des Künstlers, Städtische Galerie Villa Zanders, Bergisch Gladbach

2003   A History of Polish Avantgarde Film, MOMA, New York
2002  

Classics, Pearls and Novelties, Cinédoc, Paris

2001   Markers- Project, Venice Biennale, Venice
2000  

From Here to There, Akademie Schloss Solitude, Stuttgart
Alive Gallery (Żywa Galeria), Galeria R, Poznan
Polish Film School, MOMA, New York
This earth is a flower, Construction in Process VII, Bydgoszcz
Workshop of the Film Form (1971-79), CSW Center for Contemporary Art Zamek Ujazdowski, Warsaw

1999  

Oreste Project, Venice Biennale - Italian Pavillion, Venice
1 st International Installation Triennale Haifa, Haifa Museum of Art, Haifa
m Bochum: Fotografie - Rückblick und Ausblick, Galerie “m” Bochum, Bochum
WRO 99 - media art biennale, Wrocenter, Wroclaw

1998  

Personal Touch, Art in General Gallery, New York
The Bridge, Construction in Process VI, Melbourne
Oikos, Muzeum Okręgowe, Bydgoszcz

1997  

Another Language, Haifa Museum of Art, Haifa
Alive Gallery (Żywa Galeria), Zachęta Gallery, Warsaw

1996  

Hansa Art-Special, Cologne
Shattered Latitudes, Lombard Freid Fine Arts Gallery, New York

1995  

Under One Roof, Podewil, Berlin
Co-existence, Construction in Process V, Negev Desert, Israel
Footprint, Kunsthaus Tacheles, Berlin

1994  

Central Europe: Art from the 60s, Schüppenhauer Galerie, Cologne
Museum of Art, congress, Kunsthalle der Bundesrepublik, Bonn
Milk, Volkskundemuseum, Munich
MediumBild, T&A Galerie, Berlin
My home is your home, Construction in Process IV, Lodz

1992   Spotkanie i Tworzenie / Begegnung und Kreation, Centrum Sztuki, Poznan
1991  

In-between Project, Venice Biennale - Turkish Pavillion, Venice
Farbe Gold, Künstlerhaus, Berlin
37 Rooms, Kunstwerke, Berlin

1990  

Construction in Process III – back in Lodz, Lodz

1989  

No man's land (Niemandsland), Kunsthalle, Recklinghausen
Balcony with fan (Balkon mit Fächer), Akademie der Künste, West-Berlin
Balcony with fan (Balkon mit Fächer), Kunsthalle DuMont, Cologne
Berlin’s Art Scene, Berlinische Galerien, West-Berlin

1988   Berlin, cultural city of Europe 1988, West-Berlin
1987  

Zeitberliner, Städtische Galerie, Stuttgart
Homage to Joseph Beuys, Klaus Staeck Galerie, Heidelberg

1986  

Idee, Raum, Konstruktion, Kunsthalle, Bielefeld
After Malevich Square, Wilhelm-Hack-Museum, Ludwigshafen
Kilian Breier, Dora Maurer, Antoni Mikolajczyk, Wolfgang Schmidt, Anton Stankowski, Marie-Thérése Vacossin, Ryszard Wasko, Museum gegenstandsfreier Kunst, Otterndorf

1985  

European Film Avant-garde 1960–1980 (tour-show), American Federation of Arts
Peace-Biennale (Biennale des Friedens), Kunsthalle, Hamburg
Prozess und Konstruktion, Lenbachhaus Museum, Munich
Konkret Vier, Kunsthaus, Nurnberg

1983   Praesence Polonaise, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris
1982   Sol LeWitt’s Choice, Cenobio Visualit à Gallery, Milano
1981   Construction in Process (Konstrukcja w Procesie), Lodz
1980  

Pier + Ocean: Construction in the Art of the 70s, Arts Council of Great Britain & Hayward Gallery, London & Rijksmuseum Kröller-Müller, Otterlo
XI Biennale de Paris, Paris
Sydney Biennale, Sydney

1979  

Drawing and photography, Muzeum Sztuki, Lodz
Works & Words, DeAppel Gallery & Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam
Polish Photography, International Center of Photography, New York
Film as Film, Hayward Gallery, London
IIIrd International Festival of Indepdendent Avant-garde Film, National Theatre, London

1977  

22 Polish Artists, Kölnischer Kunstverein, Cologne
DOCUMENTA 6, Kassel
Encounter on Video, Museum of Contemporary Art, Caracas
Film as Film, Kölnischer Kunstverein, Cologne

1976  

Mechanical Means of Message (Mechaniczne Środki Przekazu), Galeria Ślad, Lodz
Experimenta, Ferro Gallery, Napoli

1975  

Workshop, Kunsthalle, Düsseldorf
Workshop, Art Center, Oslo
Workshop, Galeria BWA, Zielona Gora

1974   Musée du Cinéma, Bruxelles
1973  

XII Sao Paulo Art Biennial, Sao Paulo
Biennale of Spatial Forms (Biennale Form Przestrzennych), Galeria El, Elblag
Workshop (Akcja Warsztat), Muzeum Sztuki, Lodz

1972   Contemporary Polish Art, Richard Demarco Gallery, Edinburgh

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Stipends and Grants
1998   Jackson Pollock - Lee Krasner Foundation, Stipend
1995   International Studio Programme, New York, Artist in residence
1994  

Art Omi Foundation, New York, Artist in residence
Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, Artist in residence

1993   Jackson Pollock - Lee Krasner Foundation, Stipend
1992   Scholarship of the Senat of Berlin, Berlin, Stipend
1991   Winner of the “Sprężyna”-Award given by cultural magazine Tygiel Kultury, Lodz
1988   Jackson Pollock - Lee Krasner Foundation, Stipend
1986   Scholarship of the city of Munich,Villa Waldberta, Feldafing, Stipend
1985   DAAD, German Exchange Academy, Berlin, Stipend
1982-83   The Arts Council of Great Britain, St. Martin’s School of Art, London, Stipend
1972   Biennale of polish photography (Biennale Fotografii Polskiej), Szczecin, Grand Prix

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Works in public collections (selection) :
   

Städtische Galerie Villa Zanders, Bergisch Gladbach

Berlinische Galerie, Berlin, http://www.berlinischegalerie.de/index.php?id=54

Galerie des Landesamts
, Berlin

Sammlung
Nationalgalerie, Berlin

Neuer Berliner Kunstverein
, Berlin, http://www.nbk.org/artothek/Ryszard_Wasko/
Cinematek, Bruxelles

Muzeum Okręgowe
, Bydgoszcz
http://www.muzeum.bydgoszcz.pl/index.php

Bauhaus Museum
, Dessau

Haifa Museum of Art
, Haifa

Muzeum Sztuki
, Lodz, http://www.msl.org.pl/en/sztuka/index/char,w

Łódzkie Towarzystwo Zachęty Sztuk Pięknych (Society for the
Encouragement of the Fine Arts Collection), Lodz, http://www.artkontakt.pl/infobiz_server.php?mod=product&pid=5882

LUX Collection
, London
http://www.luxvideo.org/catalogue/alphabetical/w/w1.htm

Wilhelm-Hack-Museum
, Ludwigshafen, http://www.wilhelmhack.museum/index.php

Centre Pompidou
, Paris

Cinédoc
, Paris,
http://www.cinedoc.org/index_en.asp

Goddard de Fiddes Gallery
, Perth

Lenbachhaus Museum
, Munich

Electronic Arts Intermix
, New York, http://www.eai.org/eai/artistTitles.htm?id=13056

St
ädtische Galerie, Stuttgart

World Bank's Art Collection
, Washington

Peter C. Ruppert Collection
, Museum im Kulturspeicher Wurzburg

Bank Austria Creditanstalt Art Collection

Dresdner Bank Art Collection


Home Images Films Construction in Process International Artists' Museum CV Biography Curriculum Vitae Solo Exhibitions Selected Group Exhibitions Awards and Grants Works of Art in Public Collections Selected Bibliography