Opening of the exhibition 1978/2026/Otwock+ by Mirosław Bałka

9 October at 7 PM

Petrović Castle / The House of the King’s Guard

The exhibition 1978/2026/Otwock+ offers a retrospective view of nearly five decades of work by Mirosław Bałka, one of the most significant figures in European contemporary art.

Early figurative works are presented alongside sculptures, drawings, and installations from different periods, in situ works created in Podgorica, and a selection of video works.

The exhibition takes Otwock as its point of departure—a town near Warsaw where Bałka grew up and where he continues to work today, in his family home, which later became his studio. 

Otwock is more than a place of origin: it is where personal memory and family history intersect with the traumatic experiences of Europe’s past.

Bałka’s austere sculptures, objects, and installations address memory and forgetting, as well as historical and contemporary violence. The materials from which they are made bear traces of time, labour, and human absence. At a time marked by wars, migration, and displacement, the exhibition raises questions of home, belonging, and community.

1978/2026/Otwock+ does not construct a linear history, but rather a constellation of works, times, and experiences. From the scent of soap to the weight of steel, earth, warmth, and worn surfaces, Bałka’s sculpture does not address sight alone—it calls for the body and the presence of the visitor.

The exhibition is curated by Teodora Nikčević.

The exhibition is realised in collaboration with Mirosław Bałka Studio and Galleria Raffaella Cortese, Milan.