Sweet Jesus!
Corpus Christi at Dzika6/79 (Wild 6/78)
a communion host with jam, plate, 2012
Dzika6/79 was a nurturing haven for an alternative collective devoted to showcasing young, experimental artists within the confines of a shared flat in a residential block. This unique space provided a platform for these artists to present and exchange their radical creations, often considered challenging due to Polish law, specifically the prohibition of insulting religious sentiments (Article 196). In this refuge, these artists found the freedom to express themselves in ways that might otherwise be deemed impossible within the constraints of societal norms and legal boundaries.
The interplay between the communion host and jam accentuates the host's physicality, simultaneously diminishing its original gravity as a form of defiance against the oppressive religious landscape in Poland. This juxtaposition is executed with a subtle infusion of humor, encouraging a lighthearted interaction with an object laden with meaning—one that the disciplined queer community was taught to hold in high regard.
Gallery guests playing with hosts.
In 2016, I was invited to craft a performance that served as a continuation and expansion of "Sweet Jesus," inspired by the works of Iwona Teodorczuk-Możdżyńska. Draped in the attire of a papal figure (a costume amalgamating papal robes and drag aesthetics), I served communion hosts with jam to the guests. Unlike the earlier occurrence, these hosts weren't presented as artifacts - art objects; instead, they took on the role of a delectable dessert for the guests. Amidst the reign of the Law and Justice party (PIS) and the escalating influence of the Church, this performance became a symbolic act of rebellion and subversion—bringing forth queer perspectives on the oppressive culture and its absurdities (for example the irony that while Drag Queens are often criticized for wearing dresses, the attire of the clergy, including the papal robes, is essentially a form of drag in itself).
In front of paintings of Iwona Teodorczuk-Możdżyńska, 2016