BIO
Agata Stolarska is a Polish sculpture artist, set designer and illustrator. A graduate of the University Of Fine Arts in Poznan where she has taken part in some of the most significant entertainment arts events in the region, and graduated with the highest ranks in her MFA degree in Sculpture and Spatial Installations. A former graduate from the department of Wood Carving and Sculpture in her hometown Szczecin. She has also completed internships as a set builder and puppet & costume maker at the National Opera House and Puppet theatre in Szczecin.
Kitchen walls may be considered Agata's first large format to work on painting and decorating at the age of four. Ever since she's been captivated by the arts which lead her eventually to sculpture and theatre scenography. She has engaged in art projects around Poland and Germany. Of her most significant works was a collaboration with a group of artists during the UEFA FAN ZONE for EURO 1012 in Poznan, Poland where she has built human sized sculptures out of clay in front of a large audience within a matter of hours. "It was challenging to sculpture an anatomically correct human body, while being constantly observed by a crowd, there was so little time to get it done, but the result & feedback was quite rewarding and we felt great satisfaction in making it happen". She was also chosen to work as the main set designer for the Ethno Port Festival; one of the most prestigious folk music festivals in Europe. Now looking forward to work in the U.K where she currently resides outside of her own "shell" so to speak, to explore and go further with her skills and abilities in sculpture and set projects, create more professionally magical objects within a diverse and challenging environment.
Agata has also undertaken work as an installation artist, prop maker and mock up maker, and is familiar with most sculpture techniques, and works with materials as basic as wood, metal and ceramics to polystyrene foam and epoxides. An essential trait of her artistic personality is sensibility and spacial awareness.
"A characteristic attribute of that young artist is her passionate entanglement within the creation of any artistic visions that she has planned. She is fully aware of the necessity of continued self-education and consistent participation in new art projects." Professor Wieslaw Koronowski.
Statement
My artistic practice is focused on drawing, illustrations, sculpture, and prop and puppet design. I approach each of these fields in their own unique way.
My drawings are the most expressive of my artworks. I like to let off steam by daubing. My model’s anatomy, dynamics and character are a pretext to daubing, to create bruises, colour dashes and dynamic lines. The figures I draw are the full natural size of a human (a scale of 1:1). Thanks to the large format of my brown wrapping paper I have a greater capability to let loose and fully express myself.
By creating illustrations for children I’m releasing the child that is in me. I use colours and shapes, without limits, creating small worlds with the joy of a child. In those worlds a wolf is no longer a dangerous predator, but a harmless Caucasian Shepherd that loves to be tickled by Little Red Riding-Hood.
To create “something out of nothing” - now that’s a challenge! Often puppets and set design objects that I have been working on have had a low budget. I have dedicated a lot of imagination and hard work to actualize those projects. I love the process of brainstorming and forming unconventional solutions during the team work. I have conquered many logistical challenges to look upon the final effect with great satisfaction. We did it again!
Sculpting is a combat in some way. A combat with materials, and with your own limitations in creating forms. “Painting is so poetic, while sculpture is more logical and scientific and makes you worry about gravity.” - Damien Hirst.
For many years I have been conscientiously studying the anatomy of the human body while sculpting. Thanks to this experience I was soon ready to take part in sculpture performances. In no more than a few hours, our group of artists was creating large scale sculptures out of clay or sand in front of a live audience. I have been enjoying myself as well while working on other projects. I have been letting my imagination run wild, while modifying the human body into abstract forms sculpted in clay and cast in resin.
