The galleries at Dziedziniec Sztuki (Art Court) happened to be perfect spaces for the fourth edition of the Biennale of Photography which was realized on two simultaneous planes. The first one was a show of new Polish photography – selected by emerging curators – which touched on the most important problems of the young generation. The curators concentrated on the “freshmen’’, less known but all the more interesting.

The other level was a series of individual shows by contemporary photographers who are already well known for their works and creative attitude, and comprehensive group shows.

The main presentation Polowanie na przedmioty – nowa fotografia polska (Object Hunting – New Polish Photography) was exhibited at Stary Browar, in ARSENAŁ Gallery, and in the open air locations in the city of Poznan.

The curators had chosen photographic works which did not deal directly with the actual form of an object but rather put forward questions such as what it is that we perceive as an object, what may happen to it, in what way the act of photographing turns a subject into an object by attributing a tag to it, by analyzing it, or by controlling a certain situation. Many works tried to find an answer to what a human may become in certain situations, in certain models of behavior, or in relation to certain circumstances and time. Curators also asked about the condition of contemporary photography. How does it cope with modernity ruled by a chaos of images? To what extent does it retain its properties when it is increasingly frequently complemented with other forms of expression which extend its artistic statement?

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