Edward Krasiński

Edward Krasiński (born 1925 in Łuck, Ukraine, died 2004 in Warsaw) was one of the leading figures of Polish neo-avant-garde art in the second half of the 20th century. His work spanned a variety of visual arts, with a particular focus on sculpture, installation, painting, and graphic arts. Krasiński graduated from the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts (1947-1953), where he studied at the Department of Painting. In 1956, he began collaborating with the 55 Group, and in 1965, he founded the "Krzywego Koła" Group, dedicated to presenting experimental art that broke traditional boundaries of medium. He was also associated with the influential Foksal Gallery starting in 1966.

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Krasiński was closely linked to minimalism and conceptualism. Throughout his career, he explored new forms of expression, with a central focus on the relationship between space, object, and viewer. His work is particularly known for spatial interventions, the most famous of which used blue scotch tape—his trademark.

Krasiński gained international recognition, receiving the Golden Medal for his life’s work at the 1991 Venice Biennale and the Jan Cybis Award in 1999. He participated in numerous solo and group exhibitions both in Poland and abroad, with his works housed in prestigious collections, including the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the National Museum in Warsaw.

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Selected solo exhibitions:

2024 Edward Krasiński (1925–2004): I Lost the End, Common Arts Foundation, Warsaw

2017 Edward Krasiński, Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam

2016/17 Edward Krasiński, Tate, Liverpool, United Kingdom

2015 Edward Krasiński – Solidarity Avenue, Flat Time House, London, United Kingdom

2013 Labyrinth, Starmach Gallery, Cracow

2008 ABC, Bunkier Sztuki, Krakow

2006 Edward Krasiński: Les Mises en Scène, Generali Foundation, Vienna

2003 Edward Krasiński, Anton Kern Gallery, New York

1999 Edward Krasiński, Stara Gallery, Lublin (curator: Stefan Szydłowski)

1998 Edward Krasiński, Arsenal Gallery, Białystok (curator: Stefan Szydłowski)

1996 Edward Krasiński, Kunsthalle Basel, Basel, Switzerland

1995 Edward Krasiński, Lutsk, Ukraine (curator: Stefan Szydłowski)

1993 Edward Krasiński, Biblioteka Gallery, Legionowo (curator: Stefan Szydłowski)

1993 Ping Pong: A Game by Edward Krasiński and Stefan Szydłowski, Unveiled by Tadeusz Rolke, Biblioteka Gallery, Legionowo (curator: Stefan Szydłowski)

1992 Edward Krasiński, Biblioteka Gallery, Legionowo (curator: Stefan Szydłowski)

1984 Retrospective Exhibition, Foksal Gallery, Warsaw

1978 Venice Biennale

 

Selected group exhibitions:

2018 Among Friends: Wojciech Fangor, Stefan Gierowski, Zbigniew Gostomski, Aleksandra Jachtoma, Koji Kamoji, Edward Krasiński, Edward Narkiewicz, Jan Tarasin, Tomasz Tatarczyk, Szydłowski Gallery, Warsaw

2014 Perfectly balanced, organically abstract compositions. Polish avant-garde, Polish Institute Düsseldorf

2013/14 31st International Biennale of Contemporary Art, São Paulo, Brazil

2013 Pojmowanie bytu. Ciemność, Nieskończoność, Codzienność, Kyoto City University of Arts, Kyoto

1986 Kamoji – Krasiński – Stażewski, Foksal Gallery, Warsaw

1970 10th Tokyo Biennale: Between Man and Matter

1969 3rd Salon International de Galeries Pilotes, Museum of Modern Art of the City of Paris

1966 Guggenheim International Exhibition: Sculpture from Twenty Nations