Rotating Gallery: We Are Here

The Rotating Gallery is a space in which we present contemporary Jewish art. From 28 September until 3 November, we invite you to an exhibition of nine artists whose works were on display individually at POLIN Museum in the previous months. Using the language of contemporary art—visual and sound installations, photographs, recordings of performances, interdisciplinary projects—the artists interpret tradition and refer it to the present-day. In the Rotating Gallery, we give the floor to: Zofia Janina Borysiewicz, Kamila Czosnyk, Majk Hercberg, Maria Ka, Dominika Laster, Alex Roth, Gabi von Seltmann, Hana Umeda, Julie Weitz.

• 28 September–3 November, during the Museum opening hours, in the last gallery of the Core Exhibition
• Even though the Museum will be closed on 4 November, the Rotating Gallery will be open for viewing until 2PM. Should you wish to visit the Gallery on that day, please contact the exhibition producer Alicja Kaczmarek-Poławska at: [email protected]

In 2024, POLIN Museum celebrates its 10th birthday. With the fluid and open character of the gallery in mind, we have decided to launch a rotating, vibrant, polyphonic space for presenting the voices of contemporary artists who identify as Polish Jews. "We are here", the words spoken by Marian Turski on behalf of the Jews living in Poland today, serve to reflect this idea. Not only is this phrase a reminder of the shared history, but it also draws attention to the intercultural "here and now" that Polish Jews also create and experience.

The artworks presented in the Rotating Gallery combine the past with the present – some draw from the archives of Jewish art, others creatively touch upon the "difficult heritage" in museum collections, others still restore for the present the Yiddish language or visual signs of the shared Polish-Jewish history. The present-day has an impact on some works, too – the rise of antisemitism and tensions caused by the dramatic Israel-Hamas war create a new context and provoke questions that are often difficult to answer. Themes of anxiety and confusion, of observed and experienced violence appear, along with questions about the possibility of healing traumas and building inclusive communities.

The Rotating Gallery has operated in two stages. From 11 July until 25 September, we presented individual works by nine artists. By presenting a group exposition of all nine works between 28 September and 4 November, we create a space for a collective artistic statement that comprises multiple voices.

Partners:

Co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage – project: "Rotating Gallery as part of POLIN Museum’s 10th birthday celebration (developing a network of Jewish artists)."

The exhibition is co-financed by the EU funds, part of the CERV—Citizens, Rights and Values—program within a framework of the "MultiMemo. Multidirectional Memory: Remembering for Social Justice" project.