Forefathers’ Eve


Two of my paintings, Trojan Unicorn and The Crows Court, are on show in Kraków until 3 November 2026, so there is only a few days left to see them in person.
They are part of the group exhibition „Pieśń to wielka, pieśń – tworzenie” (A great song, a song of creation) at the Wojewódzka Biblioteka Publiczna w Krakowie (the Kraków Regional Public Library) on Rajska Street. The show was organized as part of Narodowe Czytanie 2026, Poland's National Reading Day, and it brings together eleven artists responding to the poem Dziady (Forefathers' Eve) written by Adam Mickiewicz.

Each of us chose a fragment of the drama and interpreted it in a different way and style.

Next to every painting there is a QR code that plays the exact fragment of Dziady that inspired it. The idea is to stand with the painting first, let it speak, and only then listen to the poem - so the image and the text meet in your own experience.

The exhibition opened on 5 September 2026 with the library's National Reading Day.
I'm showing alongside Natalia Biesiada-Myszak, Jan Bosak, Gabriela Buzek-Garzyńska, Małgorzata Gawarecka, Agata Lis, Magdalena Nałęcz, Lucjan Orzech, Kinga Piwowarczyk, Magdalena Włodarczyk,  Bartłomiej Zięba.
Thank you to the Wojewódzka Biblioteka Publiczna w Krakowie for the invitation and for bringing painting and literature together in such a thoughtful way.

Karolina Bochenek

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