20/03—13/09/2026 "This cat was painted during the war" — exhibition Curators: Anna Łazar Lada Nakonechna Artists: Katya Buchatska (Ukraine) Peggy Buth (Germany) Mario de Vega (Mexico) Wojciech Fangor (Poland) Ksenia Hnylytska (Ukraine) Agnieszka Kalinowska (Poland) Oksana Kazmina (Ukraine) Pavlo Khailo (Ukraine) Tarik Kiswanson (France/Palestine) Yulia Krivich (Poland/Ukraine) Aleksandra Kubiak (Poland) Zbigniew Libera and Darek Foks (Poland) Katya Libkind (Ukraine) Honorata Martin (Poland) Ivan Moudov (Bulgaria) Lada Nakonechna (Ukraine) Ilona Németh (Slovakia) Olaf Nicolai (Germany) Mariola Przyjemska (Poland) Tanel Rander (Estonia) Monika Sosnowska (Poland) Ivan Svitlychnyi (Ukraine) Miloš Trakilović (Bosnia and Herzegovina/Netherlands) Variable Name (Valeria Karpan and Maryna Marynichenko) (Ukraine) Zbigniew Warpechowski (Poland) Poster design: Fontarte We invite you to the exhibition opening on March 20, 2026 at 7:00 PM. Photo and video documentation will be made during the opening. Work in the background — Honorata Martin, courtesy of the artist. The power of art — unlike propaganda — lies, among other things, in unsettling our habitual patterns of perceiving reality and revealing doubts. It is precisely in the field of contemporary art that meanings important to the community are negotiated. When looking at an artwork, it is worth asking questions both about its message and the means used, as well as about the sources from which its formal solutions derive. By interpreting and provoking reality, artists expose the dominant discourses of visual politics. Does war change art? Yes, just as it changes human life. Most preexisting problems intensify and new ones arise. The exhibition title This Cat Was Painted During the War only appears to be a simple statement. First, it is not a cat (“ceci n’est pas une pipe” — “this is not a pipe”), although it evokes associations with the dopamine pleasure of viewing images on the internet. The sentence was spoken by the artist Kateryna Libkind, emphasising that war provides an inescapable frame for every situation. Second, the verb “painted” plays with the common belief that art is created by drawing, painting or sculpting. Meanwhile, the exhibition presents works made using other strategies. Third, we face the fundamental question about the orientation of our own actions in times of total crisis. Is there still room for critical reflection during wartime? Thus, the exhibition deals with art created in the face of war. Questions return about the lasting imagery of the Second World War, the war in the former Yugoslavia and, above all, the war closest to us in time and territory — the war against Ukraine, whose struggle for freedom and life we support. It is from the experience of this war that our exhibition grows. The presented works were selected in response to questions we asked ourselves as curators. Is art effective? What can we expect from it in times of crisis? How does it take up important issues of public debate, including the experience of war, European identity, women’s rights or decolonisation from the perspective of countries of the former socialist bloc? How does war affect our sensitivity when documentation from sites of crimes coexists on computer screens with pop culture and AI-generated images? And can art help us imagine the world differently than dominant narratives suggest? 20/03—13/09/2026 "Цей кіт був намальований під час війни" Curators: Anna Łazar Lada Nakonechna Artists: Peggy Buth (Germany) Katya Buchatska (Ukraine) Zbigniew Warpechowski (Poland) Mario de Vega (Mexico) Ksenia Hnylytska (Ukraine) Agnieszka Kalinowska (Poland) Oksana Kazmina (Ukraine) Tarik Kiswanson (France/Palestine) Yulia Krivich (Poland/Ukraine) Aleksandra Kubiak (Poland) Zbigniew Libera and Darek Foks (Poland) Katya Libkind (Ukraine) Honorata Martin (Poland) Ivan Moudov (Bulgaria) Lada Nakonechna (Ukraine) Ilona Németh (Slovakia) Olaf Nicolai (Germany) Mariola Przyjemska (Poland) Tanel Rander (Estonia) Ivan Svitlychnyi (Ukraine) Monika Sosnowska (Poland) Miloš Trakilović (Bosnia and Herzegovina/Netherlands) Pavlo Khailo (Ukraine) Variable Name (Variable Name) (Valeria Karpan and Maryna Marynichenko) (Ukraine) We invite you to the exhibition opening on March 20, 2026 at 7:00 PM. Photo and video recording will take place during the event. Frame — from the work by Honorata Martin The power of art — unlike propaganda — lies in revealing doubts and undermining mechanisms behind habit. It is precisely in the sphere of contemporary art that negotiations about meanings important to the community take place. Looking at an artwork, one should ask questions about its content, the use of visual rhetorical means and the source of chosen formal solutions. By interpreting and provoking reality, artists expose dominant discourses of visual politics. Does war change art? Yes — just as it changes human life. Problems of the past do not disappear; new ones are added. The exhibition title This Cat Was Painted During the War only at first glance is a simple statement. First, it is not a cat (“ceci n’est pas une pipe” — “this is not a pipe”), but it is associated with the dopamine pleasure of viewing images on the internet. This phrase was said by the artist Kateryna Libkind, stressing that war gives a frame even to the simplest action. Second, the verb “painted” toys with the widespread conviction that art is created through drawing, painting or sculpture. Instead, the exhibition presents works created using other strategies. Third, we face the extreme question about the orientation of our actions during a total crisis. Is there room for critical reflection during war? Thus, the exhibition refers to art that arises against the background of war. Questions return about the duration of images of the Second World War, the war in the former Yugoslavia and, above all, the war closest to us in time and territory — the war against Ukraine, whose struggle for freedom and life we support. It is from the experience of this war that our exhibition grew. The presented works were selected as an answer to the questions the curators asked themselves: is art effective? What can we expect from it in times of crisis? How does it raise important issues of public debate, including the experience of war, European identity, women’s rights, decolonisation from the perspective of countries of the former socialist bloc? How does war affect our sensitivity when documentation from crime sites coexists on computer screens with pop culture and images generated by artificial intelligence? And can art help us imagine the world differently than dominant narratives suggest? We enter into a dialogue with artworks that raise such questions.
