Woodstock on the Brda - art camp - Construction in Process VII—"This Earth Is a Flower"

Art in America, March, 2001 by Richard Vine

Created in the aftermath of martial law, Construction in Process, then one of many underground movements in Poland, sought to reinvigorate communalist principles with a "true" meaning directly at odds with the Soviet "perversion" of Marxist doctrine. It was an idea shared by many at the time, including many youthful American radicals. Most, however, have since given up the dream. The market economy seems irresistible now, particularly in light of historical evidence that, however noble in concept, collectivism (to say nothing of Socialism or Communism) leads inevitably to economic stagnation, authoritarian rule, or both.

So it is that, back in Manhattan, recovering slowly from the minor annoyances and deprivations of Construction in Process, one begins to think of those days and nights in the camp as one thinks of some errant, difficult lover. Grant--no, insist--that the event is corny, outdated, even cultlike; still, it has set off a sly psychological alteration: one that, to paraphrase a faraway song, makes even the most jaded observer willing--despite the contemporary mania for ever-slicker global biennials--to once more simply "give art a chance."

Construction in Process VII--"This Earth Is a Flower" took place June 18-July 2, 2000, in and around Bydgoszcz, Poland. Exhibition dates for the three shows in Warsaw were: "Polania Polania," at the Galeria Sztuki Wspolczesnej Zacheta [May 23-July 2, 2000]; "Polish Conceptualism, Part III," at the Center for Contemporary Art Ujazdowski Castle [June 2000]; and "Points of Reference" (a retrospective of the painting of Wlodzimierz Jan Zakrzewski) at the Museum of Xawery Dunikowski in Krolikarnia [May 12-June 30, 2000].