Stach Szumski

Stach Szumski (1992, Gdańsk, Poland) samples and deconstructs iconographic motifs used in interpersonal communications from the very origins of humanity: from prehistoric wall paintings and medieval alchemical symbols to contemporary graffiti, popular tattoo patterns, and logos of global corporations. He weaves symbols from various eras and cultures into organic, ornamental forms. In his new work he further develops his interest in notification systems and past and future evolution of symbolisms as pre- and-post civilization traces. He creates new, fictional symbolic systems that refer to early civilization symbols but at the same also appear as a message arriving from a faraway future, a language we yet need to learn how to decipher. The work is also a timeline picturing the development of the intention and domination of man on the planet, from relatively innocent hunting records to modern pictograms, that informs about radioactivity and toxicity of human activities. 

Stach Szumski is a graduate of the Media Arts Department of the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. He creates paintings, installations, sculptures, graphics, drawings, and murals in public space, attributing his visual education chiefly to grass-roots practices associated with post-graffiti. He is a co-founder (with Karolina Mełnicka) of the Nomadic State project – an artistic collective and fictional nomadic micro-nation established in 2015. The visual messages of late capitalism and the side effects of globalization serve as fodder for his art. He carries out his works – including large-format murals as well as interdisciplinary projects based on local research – during and as the fruits of his numerous travels around the world. The artist has created numerous projects in Poland and worldwide (India, Japan, Mexico, Ukraine). His works were presented among others in Museum od Modern art in Warsaw, Center for contemporary art in Warsaw, CAC in Vilnius and Kyoto Art Center.

Date of residence: 1. 2. –⁠28. 2. 2022