Critical algorithms – Ujazdowski Castle Centre for Contemporary Art

During winter and spring 2020, three artists are in residence at the Ujazdowski Castle Centre for Contemporary Art: Pierre Coric from Belgium, Ivan Svitlichnyi from Ukraine, and Dani Ploeger from the Netherlands. They are all interested in new technologies and their place in contemporary culture.

Pierre Coric researches systems, primarily related to language. His work has been shown at exhibitions in Antwerp, Berlin and Amsterdam. During his stay in Warsaw (January–April 2020), he was conducting research on human and non-human users of the Vistula River and continued work on his AA-ZZZZ project, in which, using an algorithm he created, he assembles letters of the local alphabet and images found in Google’s image search engine. This is how a book, in which words and meanings are accidental, is created. The Warsaw public was to see the publication during a meeting with the artist at the Art Bookstore in the Ujazdowski Castle, however, due to coronavirus pandemics, the book launch was cancelled. Pierre Coric made We're In This Together project together with U–jazdowski followers during institution's Instagram takeover.

Ivan Svitlichnyi is a sculptor and performer, the winner of the Kazimir Malevich Artistic Award 2018, awarded every two years to artists from Ukraine who break stereotypes in contemporary art. Svitlichnyi is the founder and co-creator of TEC – a creative exhibition centre in Kharkov. During his residence in Warsaw (January–April 2020) he works on developing the Shukhliada project, which he began in 2013 with friends, Lera Polianskova and Max Robotov. Shukhliada.com is an online exhibition space, a support platform for independent art projects. Conceived as a grassroots, anti-institutional activity, it allows for independent presentation of the work of Ukrainian artists.

Dani Ploeger is a musician, performer, lecturer, and researcher. He graduated from the Royal Conservatory in The Hague and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra Academy. He defended his doctoral dissertation on the role of sound in the presentation of bodies in performance at the University of Sussex. He is the author of numerous academic publications and workshops. He creates objects, films, and software. He is interested in conflict and crisis situations, technological consumerism, marketing of innovation, and power relations. During his residency at the Ujazdowski Castle Centre for Contemporary Art (March–May 2020) he intends to continue his project on the subject of borders in Europe, the use of technology, and body empowerment in the context of international security.

The residencies are supported by the Flanders State of Art (Belgium), Mondriaan Fund (Netherlands), as well as the Adam Mickiewicz Institute and the Polish Institute in Kiev.

• Curator
  • Julia Harasimowicz