City dwellers and fantasy creatures appear together in the lush jungle of imaginary landscapes – the wall paintings of the creative hub of Wrocław were prepared by Alicja Biala, portraying our relationship with nature.
Słodowa island in Wrocław, similarly to Margaret Island in Budapest, sneaks a touch of nature into the cloth of the city, and is a favored spot for both the little ones and adults. This is where creative incubator house Concordia Design opened this summer – the 19th century building was transformed into a modern hub by international architecture studio MVRDV, while also respecting the original layout of the building. The same as in the case of architecture solutions, the designers set communication with the history and values of the island as a goal in the case of designing the interiors of the house, too. Polish artist Alicja Biała worked on the more than 500 sqm ceiling and wall surface in this spirit.
The work started in the fall of 2019, and Alicja wanted to argue against the fast-paced lifestyle, advocating for slow living and being close to nature with her colorful wall paintings already at that time, and her message has turned into a self-fulfilling prophecy during the pandemic.
The exciting visual world of the painting draws our attention to slowing down, the appreciation of the small joys of everyday life as well as to nature. Floating human figures, both young and old, fantasy creatures, the watchful eye of Mother Earth, and the figure of Saint Clare also appear on the richly illustrated walls. The latter is an important symbol of the island, as the area used to belong to the order of Saint Clare, the Clarisses in medieval times.
The characters displayed on the painting do not tell a single story, it is rather up to us how we interpret the scenes.
“It’s like when you are sitting on a bench, just looking at the people passing by, and you are thinking of what their stories could be”– the artist told us.
In addition to the mural, the artist also participated in designing the reception area of the building, in the course of which she used the original ceramics of the edifice and also created a hanging installation functioning as a lamp for the space.
Source: Property Design
Alicja Biała | Web | Facebook | Instagram
MVRDV | Web | Facebook | Instagram
Concordia Design | Web | Facebook | Instagram
Alicja Biała (1993-) is a visual artist and designer. She works with multiple media – her projects range from photography through drawing, to large-scale sculpture art. She completed her studies at VIA University and the School of Design and Technology in Copenhagen, and is currently a student of The Royal College of Art in London.
The works of the Hungarian artists of the Biennial of Illustrations Bratislava exhibited
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