Krzysztof Urbaniak - Nieprzeczytana książka

Krzysztof URBANIAK
Year of birth: 1980
Artist who paints with words
A break from reality painted with words
My paintings are a theater of imagination – situations that I found myself in, conversations I conducted, meetings I explained. The images arise in a place where many cultures meet: Polish, Alsatian, French, German and Swiss, and in many languages: Polish, French, German and English. The title of a painting is in the language in which I think at the moment it appears in my mind.
My artistic creation began at the moment I learned to read. Words, quotes, song lyrics, associations related to the past, present and future, fragments of cabaret performances recited by memory – everything connected with the word paints my images. “A word at the beginning” – just as a line begins every drawing and painting. Many images are inspired by the words of song lyrics.
I am self-taught.
Education
I studied drawing and art history with Professor Joël LEBRA; my passion for art history was passed on to me by Professor Mariusz Karpowicz, William Kurtyka taught me to look at paintings and encouraged artistic work.
Philosophy
Each painting is accompanied by a description and analysis. Each painting begins with words spoken by me, or by my interlocutors. Around them, form, shape, color, line thickness, etc., are built. The lines on the paintings connect into a loop, allowing one to get lost while viewing the image and enabling its analysis after reading the text, which is an integral part of it.
Music is often associated with the paintings, which I invite you to listen to while viewing the image.
Reading and speaking are natural activities. It is also natural to break with reality, which I enable for the viewers of my works. The stories told in the paintings are true – REALITY DELIVERS MORE EMOTIONS THAN FICTION. Sometimes improbable. The person looking at my paintings has the opportunity to lose themselves and find themselves again. The person reading the painting’s description has the possibility to find themselves while looking, to get lost and to rediscover.
Technique
Acrylic on canvas, acrylic on paper, ink on paper, collage, mixed media.
Inspiration
I am inspired by the words spoken by people, words written, translated and untranslatable, images, sculptures and buildings created by people, including among others Dadaists, Dariusz Orwat, the Bauhaus movement, Annie Albers, Le Corbusier, Jean Tinguely, Hans Arp, Niki de Saint Phalle.
Past exhibitions

March 2024. Exhibition of paintings at Domaine du Hirtz, Wattwiller, France.

May 2025. Exhibition at the City Hall of Pfastatt, France.

June 2025. Exhibition during the charity event “Two Hearts,” Strasbourg, France.

July and August 2026. Poland (Polanica-Zdrój) France (Mulhouse). Many locations, including the Pieniawskie Gardens and Art Café in Polanica-Zdrój, the Mediateka in Pfastatt, and the Le Coin des Delices restaurant in Moosch.

September 2026. Exhibition Regards croisés (Crossed Gazes) at the Saint-Etienne church, Mulhouse, France.
ARTISTIC CONCEPT
I paint pictures with words; the form of the painting, its shapes and colors are planned before painting. This stems from the impossibility of making corrections while painting. The concept of the paintings is based on a line that forms a loop. The line does not cross itself anywhere. I chose the loop because it symbolizes the repetition of cycles in nature, of which I am a part. Cyclicity is inscribed in a human. The number of words available in each language is limited; we use about 1,500 – 2,000 words for free communication, words and letters repeat cyclically, but each time in a different context.