Wilhelm Sasnal

The art of Polish painter Wilhelm Sasnal, born in 1972, offers an entirely new and unfamiliar perspective on the meaning of images of day-to-day reality. His paintings reflect both fascination with the easy availability of visual images and a sense of skeptical concern. They represent an artist's approach to painting, film, and media that does not exhaust itself in personal mythology. Sasnal's own existential fears, the revival of discussion regarding Poland's role during the Holocaust, and other developments in Polish society are addressed directly or indirectly in his works. The book presents the first comprehensive review of Sasnal's paintings and places it within the broader context of his reflections on art and music. The artist uses sources from Soviet photography, including works by Rodchenko; makes reference to a Polish children's book; defamiliarizes Art Spiegelmann's comic MAUS; and works from concert photographs of such music groups as Sonic Youth and Einstürzende Neubauten. Exhibition schedule: Kunsthalle Zürich, August 23 - November 2, 2003 · Westfälischer Kunstverein, Münster, September 19 - November 16, 2003