Alina Szapocznikow's First North American Gallery Retrospective at Broadway 1602
From November 18, 2007, to January 12, 2008, Broadway 1602 in New York hosted the inaugural North American gallery retrospective of Alina Szapocznikow, curated by Anke Kempkes. The showcase included drawings, small sculptures, and Photosculptures, focusing on her investigation of the fragmented female form. Szapocznikow, born in Kalisz in 1926, endured the horrors of Auschwitz and Theresienstadt before pursuing studies in Prague and Paris. Her artistic journey concluded with her passing from cancer in 1973, featuring notable works such as Illuminated Lips and Belly-Cushions. Earlier creations like the 1953 Monument to Russian-Polish Friendship and later pieces, including the Tumors series, reflected her battle with illness. The retrospective sought to familiarize Western audiences with her significant impact on feminist art.
Key facts
- Alina Szapocznikow's first North American gallery retrospective ran from November 18, 2007 to January 12, 2008 at Broadway 1602 in New York
- Curator Anke Kempkes organized the exhibition, featuring drawings, small sculptures, and Photosculptures
- Szapocznikow was born in 1926 in Kalisz, survived Auschwitz and Theresienstadt, and died from cancer in 1973
- Her work includes Illuminated Lips and Belly-Cushions from the late 1960s/early 1970s, cast from her own body
- She created the 1953 Monument to Russian-Polish Friendship under Socialist Realist decrees
- Szapocznikow's Photosculptures (1971) documented ephemeral chewing gum sculptures
- She was exhibited at Documenta and Frieze for the first time in 2007
- Pierre Restany praised her work's "indefinable quality of detachment and strange serenity in humor"
Entities
Artists
- Alina Szapocznikow
- Anke Kempkes
- Louise Bourgeois
- Magdalena Abakanowicz
- Yves Klein
- Niki de Saint-Phalle
- Jean Fautrier
- Germaine Richier
- Piotr Stanislawski
- Pierre Restany
- Amy Chmielewski
Institutions
- Broadway 1602
- Documenta
- Frieze
- Kunsthalle Basel
- Brooklyn Museum
- Boston University
- Courtauld Institute of Art
- Galerie Florence Houston-Brown
- IRSA Publishing
- ARTMargins Online
Locations
- New York
- United States
- Kalisz
- Poland
- Auschwitz
- Theresienstadt
- Prague
- Czech Republic
- Paris
- France
- Kassel
- Germany
- London
- United Kingdom
- Los Angeles
- Brooklyn
- Boston
- Warsaw
- Krakow