We invite you to a discussion on institutional critique and education through art. The latest issue of the journal “Elementy. Sztuka i Dizajn” (No. 6) provides an opportunity to address these topics. The event will take place on Tuesday, April 29, at 5:00 p.m. at the Academy of Fine Arts Gallery (18 Basztowa St.).
Magdalena Ujma will moderate the discussion with Dorota Jędruch and Aleksy Wójtowicz.
Institutional criticism and education through art are closely intertwined. Institutions are key nodes in the art world and play a fundamental role in defining, producing, and making art accessible. In doing so, they exercise control over the flow of ideas and works of art. Since they are so important—and at the same time so dangerous—they should be accompanied by intense reflection. Education provides the tools for this reflection, fostering critical thinking and extending far beyond simply teaching how to appreciate contemporary art. In fact, its role is crucial to sustaining (and improving) the state of today’s democracy.
Dorota Jędruch holds a Ph.D. in the humanities, is a co-curator (with the Institute of Architecture) of numerous exhibitions, and is a co-founder of the Institute of Architecture Foundation. She contributes to the quarterly “Autoportret.” She is the author of the article “An Art Museum Without Art History?” in issue 6.
Aleksy Wójtowicz is an art critic and historian, editor of *Szum* magazine, and a member of the informal group Consortium of Post-Artistic Practices. He is interested in visual culture, the sociology of art, the so-called conservative turn, and the history of the Polish art scene after 1989. He is the author of the article “Art Competitions and the Conservative Turn” in Issue 6.
Magdalena Ujma is an art critic and historian, as well as a curator of contemporary art exhibitions. She is affiliated with the Tadeusz Kantor Art Documentation Center, Cricoteka. She is a co-founder and the first editor-in-chief of the magazine *Elementy* and the editor-in-chief of the quarterly *Restart*.
The meeting will take place as part of the events accompanying Krakers.
The graphic features a photograph of a detail from a drawing by Alicja Pakosz.