Sopot has gained a new sculpture, which stood on one of the traffic circles. It was made by Xawery Wolski - a Polish artist, recognized and appreciated internationally. The object certainly stands out on the map of the Sopot landscape, but the residents clearly did not like it, although, as the initiators of the project claim, it was supposed to bring them closer to art.
The work of art called "Echo" stood on a traffic circle connecting two streets: Hestia and Bitwy pod Plowicami. It was funded by the Hestia Artistic Journey Foundation (operating at the Ergo Hestia insurance company), whose mission is, among other things, to support young artists. Recently, the foundation has been implementing a series of events to promote art in open spaces, an example of which is the "Echo" sculpture.
The ceremonial unveiling of the sculpture took place on July 2, but it had already managed to stir up controversy among Sopot residents, who exchanged mostly unflattering opinions about it on a Facebook forum.
The object is almost four meters high and is made of bronze. The initiators of the project say that placing the sculpture in the middle of the city is intended to bring art closer to Sopot residents in a real, not just symbolic, way. The sculpture was made by Xawery Wolski, a Polish artist who, after working in Mexico for several years, returned to Poland. It is worth noting that his works have been eagerly exhibited in art galleries around the world.
He is currently focusing on building a sculpture gallery in a manor house in the Mazovian town of Dankovo. The property features, among others, the remaining works from the "Echo" series. The artist notes that he has always dreamed of having his sculpture stand in an urban space in Sopot.
residents spare no criticism
The object was supposed to weave an artistic element into the urban space, but the effect of its creation is quite the opposite. Residents do not like it, and its shape and color have caused all sorts of associations, which they exchanged, among others, on the Facebook "Forum of Residents and Residents for Sopot".
"What is this, a UFO? Who pays for the crap?"; "Is it some kind of chicken before being put in the oven?"; "This is a fig with a poppy created from gold for the illusions of the insured"; "It looks like a golden calf " - these are some of the opinions that appear in the comments on the forum under the photo of the sculpture. There were also scatological associations. Residents also suggested that, in order for the new sculpture to stand on the traffic circle, it was necessary to cut down some of the greenery. Despite the preponderance of critical opinions, there were also positive voices. Leaving aside the comments of residents - it is certainly impossible to pass by the sculpture indifferently.
It turns out that this is not the first work of art located just on this traffic circle. In 2018, the sculpture "Sopot Seagull" by Robert Florczak stood there. The city bought it for 36 thousand zlotys. Public comments towards the seagull were not favorable either....
The sculpture "Echo" is made of bronze and measures about four meters high
© Hestia Artistic Journey Foundation
Xawery Wolski (born 1960) is a Polish artist, mainly a sculptor, active internationally. He studied at the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts and the Academie des Beaux Arts in Paris, in the studio of César Baldaccini himself. As a young artist, he left Poland for three decades, living and creating in France, Italy, the United States, and Mexico, among other places, where he settled for a longer period. Several years ago, he returned to his homeland. As an heir to a pre-war landowning family, he settled in a 19th-century manor house in the village of Dańków (Mazovia Province). There the artist created a place where art blends with nature and tradition with modernity. The mansion and its surrounding garden serve as a gallery for Wolski's own sculptures, but also as a venue for exhibitions by other artists or international artist residencies.
