Manifesto for a better life
oryginal tittle: “Manifest na rzecz lepszego życia”
Salon Akademii, Warsaw, 2021
Curators:
Eulalia Domanowska
Magda Lipska
Photo:
Ida Karkoszka
Sculpture:
Fashionista (2016 – 2019)
113 x 38 x 128 cm
Mixed media – Jute bank bags, clothing tags
This will be our secret (2020)
97 x 37 x 126 cm
Mixed media – Jute bank bags, stole


„Manifesto for a Better Life” is an exhibition summarizing the last ten years of the Academy Salon's activities.
Conceived as part of the „Było/Będzie” project, the exhibition „probes” the future, showcasing works by fourteen artists and artistic collectives whose creativity looks ahead, attempting to capture the character and spirit of the times to come. The exhibition's title is borrowed from the book Epistemologies of the South by Boaventura de Sousa Santos, in which the Portuguese scholar advocates for the need to change the world around us by empowering marginalized groups: indigenous people, women, migrants, as well as restoring the lost relationship with nature, which was disrupted by the Industrial Revolution and predatory capitalism. This change is not only meant to protect humanity from an impending catastrophe but also to make the world we live in better, more equal, and just. Following the proposal of de Sousa Santos, the exhibition Manifesto for a Better Life focuses on the social and artistic issues that, from the perspective of the future, seem essential for us to continue functioning as a community. These include ecology and environmental destruction, the destructive capitalist economy, gender equality, ethnic and sexual minorities, actions for the common good, and a less hierarchical and more inclusive way of exercising power.

The works presented not only comment on the above issues but also function as a manifesto and an expression of commitment from their authors.
The exhibition includes thirteen graduates of the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts, as well as a special guest – Belarusian artist Marina Naprushkina. The invited artists represent different generations. In their works, they address themes that are important not only for art but also for broader communities, showing concern for the state of our planet and shared life on it. Their creativity is related to ecological, feminist, political, anti-capitalist art, and critical of the surrounding reality, offering alternative ways and visions of life compared to the current ones.
Artists: Paweł Althamer, Przemek Matecki, Agnieszka Brzeżańska, Mateusz Choróbski, Ida Karkoszka, Daniel Kotowski, Yulia Krivich, Paweł Żukowski, Marina Naprushkina,, Neuhamerowie (Diana Grabowska, Bruno Althamer), Mikołaj Sobczak, Paweł Śliwiński oraz Małgorzata Gurowska




SCULPTURE 
This will be our secret
(2020)
97 x 37 x 126 cm
Mixed media. Jute bank bags, stole
Fashionista
(2016-2019)
113 x 38 x 128 cm
Mixed media. Jute bank bags, clothing tags