Paweł Mysera, 26.09.2019. Warsaw, Poland.
A Dream. I was afraid. I ran away. I listened. I searched. I demolished. I apologized. I built anew. A dream. It appeared. It’s alive.
To jedne z pierwszych słów, jakie wypowiada Jan Gostyński. Wygląda na to, że owe pierwszeństwo słów wskazuje na ich znaczenie, które określa dramat tworzenia młodego rysownika, rzeźbiarza, malarza - artysty. Można by pokusić się o stwierdzenie, że takich jak Jan jest wielu... Jedyni i wyjątkowi w swoim wrodzaju, osobni, anty systemowi, żyjący na granicy światów outsiderzy. Pochowani w skorupach swoich rozedrganych, zawsze nadwrażliwych myśli, uciekający przed ludzkim spojrzeniem i jakimkolwiek osądem. Jednocześnie uparci, z pełną konsekwencją realizujący swój, tylko im znany ,,plan’’. Poszukują i wyrywają światu kawałek podłogi na własny użytek, aby na niej krzyczeć, wić się z bólu, cieszyć radością, chować w ciszy przed lękiem, niszczyć i zamykać to wszystko w plastycznej formie dzieła. Stereotyp podpowiada, że takich jak Jan zwykle nie przyjmuje się na Akademię Sztuk Pięknych ani za pierwszym, ani za dziesiątym razem. Rzekomo trudno kształcić twórcze postawy w ukształtowanej już osobowości twórcy. A jednak. Stało się. I chyba stało się dobrze dla obu stron, gdyż ciągle niepojęta moc sztuki czasem karmi się ,,błędem’’ i rozsmakowuje się nieprzystawalnością odmiennych galaktyk.
Osobność sztuki Jana Gostyńskiego wynika z głębokich pokładów wrażliwości, których nadmierna aktywność przejawia się w marzeniach sennych i śnionych koszmarach autora. Pierwszą, niemal bezpośrednią notacją sennych wizji jest rysunek na papierze. To wizualna, niemal cielesna reakcja na oniryczną rzeczywistość, której ulotność artysta spieszy się okiełznać i oswoić. Efektem ciężkiej, fizycznej pracy są setki zarysowanych kartek, na których ślad narzędzia wynika z gwałtownego gestu autora. Transfer sennych wizji do świata realnego nie ma na papierze końca i rozwija się w przestrzeni, przyjmując bogatą w kształty rzeźbiarską formę. Gostyński zdaje się krzyczeć rzeźbiąc martwą ,,cielesność’’ swoich snów, strachów, lęków, ucieczek. Budując burzy - dokonuje symbolicznego unicestwienia sennych mar, by na nowo je wskrzesić i oswoić. W ostatecznym rozrachunku stają się one posłuszne artyście i istnieją już tylko na jego warunkach. Niemniej jednak, w tym demiurgicznym akcie daje się wyczuć ciężar zmagań i potyczek z oporną materią snu i rzeczywistości. Forma zdaje się tu być zasadą tej, jakże osobnej obecności. Forma zdumiewa swoim kształtem, fakturą, sposobem konstruowania, samonośnością, dźwiganiem mas i utrzymaniem równowagi. Wszystko to staje się wieloelementowym układem, składającym się z fantazmatycznych, bezimiennych ,,postaci’’/nie - ludzi pozbawionych czytelnych cech gatunkowych. I choć powołane do istnienia bryły są unicestwione bezruchem rzeźbiarskiej materii, to jednak budzą niepokój sugestią organicznej potencjalności. Ich kształty w każdym momencie mogą ulec przeobrażeniu. Ich trwanie zależne jest od tego, kto je ujarzmił.
Jan Gostyński, Warsaw, Poland, 2019.
In a dream, the worlds are often mixed, for example human one with the animal. I imagine a world based on images, events, interpersonal relations. I dream of situations that metamorphose from bad to good and from good to bad. These are extremely contrasting situations, showing pure forms. Each form is an accumulation of my thoughts and their synthesis. My imagination allows me to combine what is physical and tangible with the psychic experiences of the world of fantasy. It is a tool that allows you to cross the borders of the sensual world. Dreaming allows you to leave everyday automatism of performed activities to introduce you to a completely different world. It provokes a change in viewing the surrounding reality and one’s own creative work.
ABOUT FORM
I do not create to get a word in edgeways to thoughts I am aware of, but to dig as deep as possible towards the form whence I will bring out the hidden content to which there is no other, easier way. It is from this the [form] that I learn about what comes up.
MATTER • FORM • MATTER
Many forces act on matter. Form is the limitation of the matter that surrounds us. It defines the duration, is in the moment. From the moment it is given existence, formation, it is subject to disintegration. I’m trying to keep it alive. I decide when to leave it. I’m cutting myself off. I stop having a dialogue with it and finally it becomes self - sufficient. Matter needs me to the same extent as I need it. Formed on my thoughts’ basis, it becomes something important. It is, after all, a collection of my fantasies, my reflection and finally, it’s something magical, mystical. I master matter and give it form. Through the emotions. I do this out of guilt and disappointment. Due to suppressed aggression. Because of happiness and love. Because of what symbolizes life, energy. (…) From the need to create my own myth which is based on my early experiences and attempts to recreate what was once lost. Only in this way I am able to achieve harmony. Sadness, regret, disappointment, longing, aggression, euphoria, happiness, love, feeling, a need to know. It’smincredible. It is all included in the form. It all produces energy, matter, structure exceeding dimensions. Dimensions created by me. My purpose is putting it all together and locking it up in a prison, in a box, in a cage waiting to be opened. Release. Free matter.
ABOUT DREAM AND DREAMING
The time of sleep, the time of reflection appears unexpectedly. It’s a fantasy. Creation from the imagination. Escape. Reaction. Stimulus. Oblivion. It awakens the worst and the best sensations. It fills with horror. It is terrifying and exciting at the same time. It pushes me to get to know it better. To recognize it. I want to venture into the darkest corners. It makes me someone else. I can do what I want without consequences. It contradicts things known. Happy, joyful, beautiful. Every dream begets the next one. The next one doesn’t know it was the previous one.
Dream ofen takes the chimeric form. Beasts and previously unknown creatures are born. They crawl out of my subconscious. In a dream, the proportions of objects often change. They become lengthened, twisted, all the laws of physics are also shaken. The pull of forms changes. Referring to the art movement called surrealism, it seems to me that I am creating a surreal world. My sculptures-beings also take on unreal shapes in relation to the objects around them but also in relation to the axis of the orbit around which they function.
dragon • beast • wings • fire • reptile • animal • reptile character • mythical • bestial • awakening • respect• magic
Mastering the form is about the ability to become obsessed with it. To find out, I have to analyze and think about what I’m doing this for, what a dream is for me. Get to know my intuition, subconsciousness from a different perspective. It is sublime because I believe so, it is momentous. Art should have a significant accent, momentum and enormity. It should be like a dream, light, fleeting, majestic. Not feasible. Magical. It is supposed to make the viewer uneasy. To instill the will to know. To discover the unknown. Everything to make it perfect. I still think about it. I process various scenarios and I reach for the information as deeply as possible. You need to pursue the topic. It must be perfect in its existence. It is a dream after all. I’m finally starting to desire it.
ABOUT THE CENTER OF THE ORBIT
An anchor found on the beach. Coming from a Mexican boat. It is the beginning and the eternal return. It is something durable and fragile at the same time. Its value is not materiality, but the experience and thoughts associated with it. It is a mythical object. It is an open book that causes memories and events to come back over and over again. It is the sun, the arrangement of my sculptures. It has the power to transform. Its beauty lies in its inviolability. I close it from the world and people. Nobody has access to this treasure, the same as no one can intrude into my memories and make me remember them differently. This is my foundation. It is a pillar of my memory of past events. A symbol. It is a gateway to another world that is born of a dream. From imagination. The initial fire that causes an explosion. Ejection of forms, emotions, thoughts. I keep it within its limitation. It catches my mind. So that it doesn’t fly or disappear.
life • death • wheel • end • portal • entrance • passing • mysticism • clues • beginning
THE FIGHT
The creative process is building, creating an undefined form and then its destruction, which under the influence of emotions and self-imposed discipline leads to its reconstruction. Imposition. Stripping.
Calming matter down. To create something, I have to destroy something first. Otherwise it will not be a creative act, but a processing. I destroy my first thought. The action comes full circle. At some point you have to say to yourself: enough. To create something, I have to destroy something first. Otherwise it will not be a creative act, but a processing. I destroy my first thought. The action comes full circle. At some point you have to say to yourself: enough.This is self-improvement. Improving the form. In the first phase, the skeleton and structure must be built. Something to bear the matter. Really the most important part. A spine. It determines how everything will turn out, how the dynamics will unfold and where the critical moment of the form will be.
The first circle is a sketch on paper. It is spontaneous. It concerns a specific event, image, emotion, fantasizing, dream. I draw more. I check various possibilities. I make sure. I predict. I plan. My job is based on fantasy, from it a sketch is made on paper that is a transformation of images. It usually is a larger than life image of the target form. It will be more complex, spatial and at the same time synthetic in its matter. It’s always different from drawing, but this drawing is important. It is an embryo, a new stage in a form’s life. I feel a strong need to realize, to change myself in the process. Sometimes I go through different phases and yet I come back to the drawing stage but it happens that the form is ready. Curiosity wins. I have to check what will be and then… what will be. The form is sometimes sketchy, sometimes not. It is loaded with my person, expression. A human hand. Climax is coming. Transition from paper and black marker strokes into space. The fight begins.
The first problem is gravity. I want the object to flow aggressively into space, This means it has to be dynamic. Ultimately, it should make an impression of being out of this world. It cannot land down heavily on the ground. It should be as fleeting as a dream. I process sketches, draw lines. I bend the bars. I weld structures. I’m starting sculpture. I leave the sheets of paper. I focus on a structure that becomes a ready-made creation and begins to live its own life. The next part is choosing a combination of one of many. It is very important to make particular decisions. You can’t compromise. Of course out of curiosity I have to check all the possibilities that come to mind. Finally, I focus on one. Finally, the sketch turned into a construction. The skeleton was formed.
The creative process is building, creating an undefined form and then its destruction, which under the influence of emotions and self-imposed discipline leads to its reconstruction. Imposition. Stripping. Calming matter down. To create something, I have to destroy something first. Otherwise it will not be a creative act, but a processing. I destroy my first thought. The action comes full circle.
At some point you have to say to yourself: enough. This is self-improvement. Improving the form. In the first phase, the skeleton and structure must be built. Something to bear the matter. Really the most important part. A spine. It determines how everything will turn out, how the dynamics will unfold and where the critical moment of the form will be.
The first circle is a sketch on paper. It is spontaneous. It concerns a specific event, image, emotion, fantasizing, dream. I draw more. I check various possibilities. I make sure. I predict. I plan. My job is based on fantasy, from it a sketch is made on paper that is a transformation of images. It usually is a larger than life image of the target form. It will be more complex, spatial and at the same time synthetic in its matter. It’s always different from drawing, but this drawing is important. It is an embryo, a new stage in a form’s life. I feel a strong need to realize, to change myself in the process. Sometimes I go through different phases and yet I come back to the drawing stage but it happens that the form is ready. Curiosity wins. I have to check what will be and then… what will be. The form is sometimes sketchy, sometimes not. It is loaded with my person, expression. A human hand. Climax is coming. Transition from paper and black marker strokes into space. The fight begins.
I WAS AFRAID
I had a dream about a piglet. There was a dark tunnel. There was ankle-deep water. Light at the end. There was darkness behind me. No way out. Two sides. Appears. Not identified. Piglet. Not that cute. Such one with pointy ears. With teeth like a shark’s. It was running. Running from the light. Approaching. It’s close now. Darkness. It splashed. Heart. Looks. Smile. Darkness.
pleasant emptiness • the world to arise • fear • dark • horror • cold sound • it is not here yet
the sun calm the sound of life
the struggle between good and evil
the sun calm the sound of life
I am afraid of limitations. I’m afraid someone will tell me that looks like not what it should or that it looks like something. I am afraid of incomprehension. No acceptance. Being different. Repeating. I’m afraid it won’t work. I’m afraid of the lack of opportunities. I’m afraid it will break. I’m afraid I won’t have enough time. I am afraid of my forms. I’m afraid to say what they are. I need a place. Space. Voids. Need? If you can see an anchor, a need arises. Need to see what will be born. Meaning nothing. Lonely. Other. Similar. Unfriendly. You must fill it in. My job is fear of the unknown and the desire to get to know it. People are afraid of form. They are afraid to feel the form. There is nothing wrong with showing the horror. People are afraid of new things, people make fun of it. It has to devour, it ... has to be open, has to distract the space, has to cut, to grab, must be open to it, it has to be predatory, aggressive and terrifying at the same time.
Weronika Zasada - Stańska, text from catalog: Jan Gostyński. Non–Humans
Dream is a real feast of shapes that cannot be included in the framework of the thematic cycle. Things are deformed there: they shrink, grow, disappear, wilt. Sometimes individual forms freeze during the process of reducing their identity and next moment they are evolving and as if by laws of myth, lock their experimental life into shapes polished and visible, reminiscent of mirrors or twisted and untamed. A dream that stimulates creative power, an arcadian and sometimes terrifying and prophetic land is the home of the ideas of Jan Gostyński. Additionally, according to the Artist, each of his paintings is created from disagreement that something has passed and arises from a bold and uncompromising desire to unseal the most terrifying nooks and crannies of all dimensions of reality, including the surreal. The goal is to get matter out of the mental underworld, self - interpretation, giving it another sense. Destruction, paradoxically, imbues the sculpture with the life of the artifact. The constant uncertainty, visible in many sketches made in the process of creation, related to what a dialogue with form is supposed to be, prompts us to further destruction and synthesis, testifies to the difficulty in transforming the abstract matter of thought and the voiceless sculptural substance into form. It also shows that the Artist goes together with form through its dramas and tensions and he is fascinated by the emergence of form from non-existence and at the same time its becoming a portal to imaginary and symbolic spaces. n Gostyński's finished sculptures critical tensions, opposing forces and overloads lie dormant. The form semantically saturated by the Artist evokes energy and reveals all the levels of communication that the Artist has achieved in working and which he collected and shaped. Following in the footsteps of Henry Moore, Gostyński treats a work of art as a separate artistic whole, regardless of the designation it represents.
The reward for the effort put into working on the form is preserving what has already passed, fleeting moments and beautiful thoughts, the freshness of old emotions and fading images. The recipient's task is therefore to cross the magical, even mystical, border of form and to release the content of the work, that is - as Norwid said - "forge the meaning". The disintegration planes of a sculpture’s shape and its multi-level indeterminacy require from the sender and the recipient a collaboration full of effort, perseverance and cognitive anxiety. However, from the perspective of an adult sculpture peculiarities quickly find their place among the imageries of an alternative world of a child - different, more interesting, and even more real, because it shows something more than a glass and an eye. Sometimes when one is looking for more than just human existence or palpable things you can discover a lurking void. It’s true that Gostyński stripped his works of external human features, but simultaneously it opened the way to borderline, peculiar non-human beings. Instead of sublimating to humans, he tended to animate phantasmagoria and dreams, trying to show them as universal existential situations. For this reason sculptures of non-humans could play a cognitive role, urging to seriously think about contradictions of human nature. Gostyński is convinced that the words from the 20th century Surrealists' manifesto are true: To live or not to live - these are imaginary solutions. Existence is elsewhere. Jan's sculptures, however, do not convey unequivocal ontological beliefs, but are auxiliary catalysts for all forms of surreality that arise in hidden places of our mind, and also a regeneration of primal myths hidden in the subconscious.
