Tiger Strikes Asteroid Los Angeles is proud to present The Room of My Own, a compelling two-person exhibition featuring the works of Magdalena Ciemierkiewicz and Barbara Gryka from southeastern Poland. This marks their debut exhibition in the United States, encapsulated in a suitcase that echoes both the childhood nostalgia of Polly Pocket dolls and Marcel Duchamp’s iconic La Boîte-en-valise.

Much like Duchamp, who transported his works to the US amidst the looming threat of World War II, Ciemierkiewicz and Gryka reference the ongoing turmoil in Europe today. Their works reflect on the war in Ukraine, the resurgence of fascism, and the rise of extreme right-wing ideologies. Set against the backdrop of an impending US election, the exhibition delves into the challenges of living within a conservative and patriarchal society, where the traumatic echoes of the 20th century still reverberate.

The artists bring miniature replicas of their works, symbolizing the potential need for migration. They ponder how to encapsulate their identities, histories, and artistic practices within the constraints of a suitcase, much like the dimensions set by airlines.

Their works explore the complexities of Eastern Europe as a borderland. Barbara Gryka addresses geopolitical tensions, natural resource exploitation, and social dynamics through performative and social interventions. Magdalena Ciemierkiewicz, hailing from the Polish-Ukrainian borderland, investigates memory, spirituality, and cultural identity, reworking the traumatic history and its contemporary implications.

The Room of My Own offers a poignant exploration of the artists’ heritage and the broader socio-political landscape. This exhibition is not only an introduction to the American audience but also a reflection on the possible future necessity of migration, embodying the artists’ quest for a safe and stable environment.

Magdalena Ciemierkiewicz is a visual artist born in 1992 in the Podkarpacie region of Poland. The key theme in her work is personal experience. She comes from the Polish-Ukrainian borderland and touches on topics such as the multidimensional identity of the borderland, women’s stories, the intermingling of cultures, and forms of spirituality. She works in contexts affected by genocide and ethnic and religious conflicts, using various media such as installation, video, light, and sound, combined with traditional forms like fabric, ceramics, painting, and printmaking.

She graduated with a master’s degree from the Faculty of Painting in 2016. She completed postgraduate studies at the Institute of Art of the Polish Academy of Sciences in 2020 and is currently a doctoral student at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. She has presented her works in solo and group exhibitions in Poland, Germany, Czechia, Kosovo, Sweden, the USA, and other countries.

https://ciemierkiewicz.net/
@magdalena.ciemierkiewicz

Barbara Gryka, an artist from the village of Końskowola in Poland, was born in April 1992. She studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw, Faculty of Media Art, and graduated from the Studio of Spatial Activities of Mirosław Bałka in 2019.

In her practice, she focuses on performative activities. Her work is centered on engaging with people, not necessarily those who deal with art. Her mother, Beata, taught her these skills.

Her favorite activity is talking; she also enjoys observing other people, their behaviors, and lifestyles. She danced in a folk group for ten years, starting at the age of six.

In Architecture from the Inside, she visited her neighbors in the LSM district in Lublin, knocking on their doors and asking for interviews. She plans to continue visiting modernist Polish housing estates. In The Motorcycle Dance, she led a group of eight men on motorcycles dancing the Lublin folk dance.

She won the Grand Prize of Hestia’s Artistic Journey at the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw in 2019, a prize established in 2002 for the promotion of young Polish art and artistic education.

Barbara has presented her works at the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw, Zachęta National Gallery, Manifesta 14, National Gallery in Prague, Galeria Labirynt in Lublin, Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, Museum of Contemporary Art in Zagreb, and Kaunas Biennale. She has held residencies at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Barcelona (MACBA), Residency Unlimited, National Museum of Contemporary Art in Athens (EMST), Plato Ostrava, Akademie Schloss Solitude, and many others.

She works and lives in Lublin and Warsaw.

https://barbaragryka.com/
@basiagryka