ANNA WALIGÓRSKA

Juror: Jacek Dominiczak

Born in Bydgoszcz, since 2000 lives in Gdańsk. Anna Waligórska specializes in painting, wall painting, stained-glass, graphic art and scenography. She graduated at the Gdańsk Fine Arts Academy, where she received a diploma in 2005 in the faculty of painting at prof. Maciej Świeszewski studio and in the faculty of wall painting and stained-glass at prof. Andrzej Dyakowski studio. During her studies she assisted in the faculty of stage design at prof. Andrzej Markowicz studio (2003). In 2004 she won the first prize in the contest “Artystyczna Podróż Hestii” (“Hestias artistic journey”) – a month scholarship in New York (May 2004). In 2008 she was a scholar of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage Scholarship “Młoda Polska” (“Young Poland”). Since 2007 she works at the Gdańsk Fine Arts Academy. Her works are in the collection of the National Art Gallery in Sopot and private collections in Poland, Germany, Spain, Holland, Luxembourg, Croatia, USA, Italy and Hungary.

Jacek Dominiczak about the artist: “With a pleasure I recommend Anna Waligórska for the next edition of the Outdoor Gallery of the City of Gdańsk contest. Anna Waligórska is a painter, whose works in an excellent way touch the intimacy of people and places. This sensitivity applied on the space of the railway tops gives a chance to move them from the typical, anonymous, non-place aura of railway stations (described by Marc Augé) into an aura of contemporary understood local identity. What is more, Anna Waligórska, is also involved in a mural and stained-glass art, which gives her the understanding and ability of acting in a big scale of public space.”

MARIUSZ WARAS

Juror: Jadwiga Charzyńska

Born in 1978 in Gdynia. Graphic artist, outdoor painter, traveler, architect-amateur. He is a graduate of the faculty of Graphic Art at the Gdańsk Fine Arts Academy, where currently he is the assistant of full prof. Jerzy Ostrogórski in the painting studio. Mariusz Waras is the author of hundreds of murals within his m-city project. The main motive of his works is the urban landscape. His works are exhibited in Warsaw, Gdańsk, Wrocław, Berlin, Paris, Jakarta, Sao Paulo, New York, Bolzano, London, Prague and other cities. In his free time he is the curator of the billboard gallery 238x504 in Gdynia and an archivist/collector of Polish street art. Professionally he is a graphic artist – a freelancer, repeatedly rewarded in contests, in 2005 in Eugeniusz Geppert contest and in Wrocław’s “Zdarzenia” (“Events”) contest. In 2008 he received a reward for young artists. He also leads art workshops in Łaźnia CCA in Gdańsk.

HANS PETER KUHN

Juror: Norbert Weber

Born in 1952 in Kiel, Germany, lives and works in Berlin. Hans Peter Kuhn is a sound artist and composer. He started his artistic career as early as the age of 6 when he performed in the theatre class of his school. As a 14 years old he initiated his first Rock'n'Roll band and in 1975 he started his professional career at the Schaubühne am Halleschen Ufer in Berlin (now Schaubühne am Lehniner Platz). Since 1979 he was more and more concentrated on his own artistic work and created since then a huge body of work. He has mainly created sound- and light installations, radioplays, composed film music (most recent "Der Letzte Kurier" by Adolf Winkelmann, WDR), and music and environments for theatre and - since 1989 - also for dance. The most prestigious award was the "Golden Lion" of the Venice Biennale 1993 that was given to Robert Wilson and Kuhn for the installation "Memory/Loss". In 1996 Kuhn was a guest professor at the Justus-Liebig-University in Giessen, Germany. In 2002 he get Contractworld Award for innovative architectural concepts for Salon du Livre (2001).

LISA RUYTER

Juror: Bettina Steinbruegge

Born in 1968 in USA, lives and works in Vienna. She studied at the MCPS Art Center in Maryland, and received graduate degrees from the School of Visual Arts and the Hunter College Graduate Fine Arts Program in New York. Ruyter’s work is a commentary on painting and photography as diverse media. Lisa Ruyter has shown her work in galleries and museums all over the world including, among others, the Museum of Modern Art (New York), the Elgiz Museum of Contemporary Art (Istanbul), Collection le Consortium (Dijon, France), La Colección Jumex (México), the Essl Collection (Klosterneuburg/Vienna), and Valencia Arte Contemporáneo (Spain). She showed her works in numerous group shows and at international art fairs. Since 1996 she has created works, in which she translates photography to the language of picture.

Bettina Steinbruegge about the artist: “I've chosen her because she combines painting with a clear notion of a history and of a political situation. She will be able to research something for the public space in Poland and will do that in all seriousness. Apart from that, her paintings are approachable and have a clear statement. I am quite sure that it will be balanced between the demands of public space and its bigger audience and the demands of a serious discussion. You will find both in it and that attracts me.”

ANDREA MASTROVITO

Juror: Julia Draganovic

Born in 1978 in Bergamo, Italy. Andrea Mastrovito always works on re-invention of drawing and of its supports, from the simple sheet to the whole gallery, and, in consequence, on re-invention of life and of its cycle. Mastrovito uses to simplify life and its images, imagining the world like an enormous Plato's cave, where ideas are bidimensional silhouettes which projects shadows of themselves on the rock faces. That's why Mastrovito often uses paper: using two dimensions instead of three, he can be closer to the original, unique, idea, to the original principle. He received his MFA in 2001 from Accademia Carrara di Belle Arti in Bergamo. In 2007 he won the New York Prize, awarded by Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He installed solo shows in private galleries in Milan, Florence, Paris, Geneva, Brussels, New York and in three Centers for Contemporary Art in Milan (Museo del Novecento), Monfalcone, Italy, and Lacoux, France. His works has also been included in many public exhibition all across Europe and United States - MAXXI National Museum of the 21st century and Palazzo delle Esposizioni, Rome; B.P.S. 22, Charleroi, Belgium; M.A.D., New York, etc.

METAFORM AND SUMO

Juror: Enrico Lunghi

METAFORM is an architectonical group from Luxembourg, who creates their buildings in cooperation with the Luxembourg Street Artist SUMO. They worked together, among other, at an apartment in Luxembourg, where SUMO covered inside and outside walls with works in a post-graffiti style. As a result they have created a building, which ideally connects modern architecture and street art. The METAFORM Group consists of Shahram Agaajani, Christelle Chevalier, Sebastiano Bizarro, Pascal Hilpert, Thierry Cruchten, Maria Klöckner, Beate Konkol, Matthieus Ristic, Nuria Quiroga, Yves Schlesser, Serge Schmithen, Ilektra Theodosiou, Luna Wayn.