Artur Rozen
Freedom as a Means for the Existence of Evil
A pitch-black pyramid that seems to defy the laws of physics; its highest part rises several millimeters above the base, while revolving around its own axis. Some believe that a similar pyramid, located on the back of an American dollar bill, is a satanic sign of the Illuminati Order. Others see it as just one part of the Great Seal of the United States – the merging of the Eye of Providence with the Pyramid of Giza. Still, others associate it with the pyramid of power, where on top are the world's financial elite and central banks, while ordinary people are positioned at the base. From here it’s already closer to the dream of a revolution, regardless of whether it will be through the Occupy Movement, anti-consumerism, the fight against gentrification, social emancipation, direct democracy, not-surrendering to the pressures of capitalism, or government transparency. It’s exactly about this that the young artist from the Szczecin Academy of Art, Artur Rozen, wrote his thesis under the direction of Dr. Mikołaj Iwański; also presenting the mentioned pyramid as part of his thesis.
Rozen’s exhibition consists of a number of works that tell about the need for free access to information and social inequalities. Its narrative runs through 17th century pirates to the homeless of the 21st century, from the first battles for free software and the manifesto of the programmer Richard Stallman, to the escape of Edward Snowden, who, just reminding, revealed hundreds of thousands of secret documents belonging to the U.S. National Security Agency in the name of government transparency. The artist reflects all of this, along with the figures of the viewers, on the shiny black surface of the pyramid.
