The exhibition “Interspaces” by Katarzyna Koczyńska-Kielan is a multidimensional narrative about form, culture, and experience. The ceramic works presented at the Nowa UAP Gallery-many of which were created during the artist’s residencies in China (Jingdezhen and Longquan)-are the result not only of technical mastery but also of bold experiments with traditional celadon porcelain, transferred from its utilitarian context into the realm of sculpture and pure artistic form.

The exhibition’s title opens the way for various interpretations. “Interspaces” refers both to physical zones-shaped between the interior and exterior of the ceramic form-and to metaphorical fields: between material and idea, past and present, East and West. The objects on display explore the boundaries where form ceases to serve a function and begins to carry meaning. Interpenetrating voids and volumes, openings and closures, guide the viewer through subtle tensions present in both space and the material itself.

The exhibition also stands as a testament to artistic consistency and courage. For years, Katarzyna Koczyńska-Kielan has sought new solutions within ceramics, treating it not as a utilitarian medium but as a fully-fledged language of expression. Her objects-organic, focused, and delicate-grow out of a deep dialogue with tradition, but are not an homage; rather, they are a transformation and a shift. Chinese inspirations are not quotations, but matter filtered through the artist’s sensitivity and inscribed into her own creative language.

“Interspaces” is also a journey through stages of artistic development-the exhibition combines works from various periods, showing the continuity of exploration and the constant transformation of the artist’s craft. It is a space where time, matter, and gesture meet. And where the viewer-wandering among the forms-can experience silence, focus, and a deep, almost meditative contact with art.

Katarzyna Koczyńska-Kielan is an artist and professor of fine arts, affiliated with the Eugeniusz Geppert Academy of Art and Design in Wrocław, where she leads her own ceramics studio and educates new generations of artists. She specializes in ceramic sculpture, and her work-oscillating between organic geometry and discursive abstraction-builds emotional tension between form and space. She has held over 25 solo exhibitions and participated in more than 140 group shows in Poland and abroad. She has twice been an artist-in-residence in China, creating works using traditional celadon porcelain in non-utilitarian, sculptural forms. Her objects are found in the collections of, among others, the National Museum in Wrocław, Poznań, and in international collections. She is the recipient of many prestigious awards, including the Minister of Culture and National Heritage Award for teaching (2024) and the Silver Cross of Merit (2019)

Curator: Mateusz Bieczyński