Ultrastructures

With “Ultrastructures” Dominik Jałowiński takes us to a dreamlike journey in time and space, that leads us through human fears and hopes since the II WW to this day. The presented works are separated elements of the whole, they create a complex image that draws the viewer into a kaleidoscope effect.

The structure of the exhibition is based on a psychedelic experience (trip). Its form is inspired by classic psychedelic decorations from the 60s and 70s – wall designs, a disco ball, properly selected light, fractal collage expositions (ranging from large wallpapers to small collages hung on them). Apart from the collages, an important element of the exhibition is the “discodecahedron”. It has the shape of a star, a geometrical solid – the so-called small stellated dodecahedron. Dodecahedron itself is one of the five Platonic solids, and each one of them represents a different element. The element of the dodecahedron is the ether, the substance that fills the universe.

During the psychedelic experience, the brain regions that are usually separated got merged – this can be compared to higher state of consciousness or dreams. Walter Benjamin wrote: “The language of sleep is not in words but in the midst of them. Words are dreamlike products of meaning, which are in the infallible continuity of a certain river“ (Dream Language, from the volume of Dreams).

On this principle, Jałowiński brings together microscopic photographs of cells and the history of post-war Central Europe. It gives us an instinctive experience. There is no cold-hearted analysis or rationality in them. The key is the clash and penetration of images, the integration with nature, which simultaneously gives us unpredictable, volatile visual effect and emotional excitement.

“My collages depict a vision of humanity engulfed in battle and competition. They are a kind of bad trip, after which we start to wonder what is wrong with us. And figuring it out is the first step to change”, explains the artist.

Dominik Jałowinski’s collages are made of materials from 1960s-80s albums on culture and science and from catalogs promoting the communist ideology in Central Europe: Ultrastruktury komórek kręgowców (Ultrastructure of vertebrate cells), PWN, 1981; Olympic Games 1976 (Innsbruck, Montreal), Sport and Tourism, 1978; Marynarka wojenna (Navy) 1945-1970, Wydawnictwo Morskie, Gdańsk 1971; 40 Godina borbe za socijalizam (40 years struggle for socialism), Belgrade, 1960

Dominik Jałowiński

Born 1981 in Lublin, Poland. He lives and works in Warsaw. Dominik explores art from different perspectives – he is a visual artist, a performer, a painter, and a collage maker. At his workshops he questions the boundaries of art as well as cultural, ethnic and social ties. In 2008 he defended his diploma in the studio of prof. Krzysztof Wachowiak at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. In 2015 he was a scholar at the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.