altar pictures

"The altarpiece mentioned by Marek is a work by Bartek [Bartosz R. Milewski] and Maciek [Maciej Baczyk] made of an old cabinet previously owned by Filip, and other materials most of which were obtained as a result of dumpster exploration in the area near Maciek's house. The work is a tribute to a flier given to Bartek in Okecie International Airport in Warsaw by an American tourist traveling to a catholic convention in the city of Wroclaw. The content as well as the peculiar language of the flier, to which a bad English to Polish translation had largely contributed, would have made it a truly dadaistic piece if only its humor was intentional. Therefore it is perfectly understandable that the house on Canaletto Street in which construction of the altar took place was filled with laughter of these friends to whom the flier was presented". (An excerpt from the "Strawberies" written by Maciej Baczyk and Bartosz Milewski and published in 1998 by "Studium" in Poland)

Christ reveals himself to Veronica Leuken of New Jersey. Humanity has been committing terrible sins and the danger from "the brown bear of communism with red orientation" is still present. The beast "will try to eat the Holy Father by murdering him and put a communist marionette on the dome of St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome". (Absurd? Certainly.) But God is watching. "The rock of judgement" (also called "the ball of salvation") is present in the earth's atmosphere, ready to strike. The believers are advised to pray as well as prepare articles necessary for survival such as holy water, candles, cans, a can opener, matches and blankets "needed due to extreme cold".

The altar is not a comment on religion, but the language. Ideas posed by the flier were carried to the extreme and further, towards a new interpretation of sanctuary art in which the non-traditional methods are used alongside traditional altar imagery. The side panels are a plastic representation of the "catastrophe in Rome." They utilize painting, collage, relief and the use of words quoted from the flyer. By looking at the beautiful art, the asteroid victim can find a divine inspiration, which will help him (or her) to deal with the new and challenging conditions. The middle section (made of an old cabinet) holds the items necessary for survival of the body.

The above is a fragment of "The Blast From The Ass" in which I am explaining the ways in which my friend Maciek amd I work together spontaneously, with laughter in media such as music, theater, literature, plastic arts, video and others. The altar is just one of many examples of our collaboration. Soon I will present other goodies on this website.