Ewelina Skowronska: The Body as a Vessel

Voices From The Inside

Voices From The inside

Ewelina Skowronska

Voices From The inside

Voyage Libra

Acts of Sensations

If Not, Winter.

Upaly.

Time Will Tell

Polish artist Ewelina Skowronska explores the human body as a vessel for experience and identity. Through her mixed media work, Ewelina draws inspiration from her own personal experiences as a female visual artist, while also looking to poetry and mythology to inform her work. In this interview, Ewelina shares her journey - from studying political science, to earning her MA in Visual Arts in London, and now continuing her art practice in Japan.

Tell me about your background and where your creative journey began.

I entered the art world through the back door I suppose. I always wanted to do art, but when I didn't get into art school in Poland, my parents convinced me to study something I was still interested in, but that is not art. So, I did my masters in Social Science. Then I worked for many years in advertising as a creative. However, after some time I still felt that what I really want to do was art. So when I was 33 years old I applied for an MA in Visual Arts in London. My application was accepted, so I quit my job, moved to London and since my graduation in 2016 I am lucky to make art full time.

Where do you find inspiration for your work?

My work focuses on the body, its form, but also I see it as a vessel for our experience, history, and identities. So in a sense my work is inspired by the everyday, by my own experience as a woman, as a Polish woman living in different countries and cultures, now for example in Japan. Very often a line of text or poem I am reading might be a huge inspiration, or a starting point for a new work. Sometimes inspiration comes to me from the outside world, but very often some images are coming to me almost like in a dream, and I know I have to take them out from me. However frankly speaking, I also think that art like any other practice requires time and commitment, and everyday effort. And then at least for me, when I am focused on my work, the ideas come effortlessly.

How has your work shifted and evolved over time?

Everything is changing and everything goes. So, of course me and my art practice is in a constant state of motion. Not always are there huge shifts of course, but looking at some works from 2019 I can definitely see my process and how some works I had to make in order to move forward.

What does a typical day in the studio look like for you, and how has your art practice grown or changed?

My studio is quite far from my home, 1hr by bike or train (it’s funny that it takes the same amount of time), so I usually have some structure in my head before I come to the studio. But what I do in the studio varies depending on what I am working on at a certain moment. Sometimes I do research sitting downstairs - I share a studio with 3 other creatives, so we have a great library and space to think. When I am producing I am completely in my own world, messing around in my studio. So I think in a sense, everyday is a bit different. But I have to confess that afternoons and evenings are the best times for me to fully dive into creative kinds of work.

Which experiences have impacted your work as an artist?

I don’t see separated experiences as a force that impacts my work. But definitively the sum of my personal experiences, the place I live in at a certain moment; the books, articles, poems I read, movies I watch or conversations I have with other people. All this has an impact on me. I can definitively say that living in Japan for the last 5 years has impacted me more than I was admitting in the beginning. Thanks to it I decided to initiate a project called “ONA project room” that aims to support female artists based in Japan through a series of pop up style exhibitions.

How has Instagram impacted your art career?

Instagram is a great tool to share the work, as well as connect with other artists, galleries or institutes, to learn about other people’s practice, workshops, and residencies. So, it definitely helped me to reach a new audience with what I have to say. However, I think it is important to remember that not everything we see there is a full spectrum of reality. An art career is also full of unsuccessful applications, rejections, weeks without income from the art, or periods without scheduled exhibitions and shows. Sometimes the road is very bumpy but instagram creates this illusion that everyone around us is actually “making it”. So, I am very happy I have tools to be more connected to what is going out there, but also I am trying to remember that what matters at the end of the day is my art practice, and not the amount of likes it receives.

What are your future goals and aspirations?

My goal is to become a better artist and to create work that is meaningful for me, but also has an impact on the community. Saying this, I hope I can constantly grow, visit artist residences, meet other talented individuals, learn from them and expand my practice.
Additionally, I would love to be involved in the projects that will constantly challenge me and allow me to work with other super talented people. And last, but not least, I cant’ wait to show my work in physical galleries, as I believe in the personal contact with art.

Victoria Fry