Performance artist Izabela Brudkiewicz places herself in uncomfortable situations that test the limits of her mental and physical resilience. She is fascinated by the commonplace microevents through which we maintain and measure out our daily lives. In her performances, these many unremarked upon repetitions become tasks of Sisyphean magnitude. Refuting the argument that a woman cannot be fully committed as both artist and mother, Brudkiewicz, since the birth of her first child, has made the responsibilities and demands of parenthood part of the material of her practice.

At DODO’s invitation, Brudkiewicz has prepared the exhibition neither here nor there as a response to the work of the pioneering feminist artist Monica Ross (1950-2013), whose archive, until recently, was held in storage in a room on Phoenix Art Space’s south stairwell. Ross was prominently involved in The Women’s Postal Art Event (1975-1979) which amassed a body of collectively and collaboratively produced work dealing with issues of race, sex, class, politics, domesticity, child rearing etc.. Looking back 20 years later, Ross noted that many of the issues which had been addressed during the postal art event, as well as in her subsequent practice, had yet to be consigned to history. This is no less the case now.

Brudkiewicz’s neither here nor there brings together a number of pieces in which the artist has re-appropriated canonical works of the 20th century avant garde, re-examining these through the dynamic of the mother/child relationship. Monica Ross’ performative text history or not is also re-voiced specifically for this exhibition, taking up Ross’ strategy of re-contextualisation across time and remaining sensitive to her understanding of history as a reflexive tool.

– This exhibition was postponed in January, it is now reopening for a week in May.
This exhibition will be open from 17 – 24 May. Saturday, Sunday, Monday, 11.00 – 15.00. Visitors must pre-book a free, timed slot in advance of their visit. 20 min slots, 3 people max. BOOK HERE

ABOUT IZABELA

In 2020, the University granted Brudkiewicz her Masters degree in Fine Art. She has exhibited internationally in group shows in France, the Netherlands and the United States. Domestically, Brudkiewicz has maintained a close association with Project 78 in St Leonards, conducting performance residencies there each year between 2014 and 2018. Read Izabela’s interview with artist Katy Beinart. 

ABOUT GALLERY DODO

Gallery DODO is an artist-led exhibition space situated on the south stairway inside of Phoenix Art Space. Visitors must pre-book a free, timed slot in advance of their visit. BOOK HERE