In the latest installation, “A Man Eating His Own Tail,” Przemek Branas references the transcultural mythical figure of the Ouroboros. Associated with solar cults, the serpent became a symbol of infinity, eternal return, and the cyclical nature of time. This constantly devouring and regenerating mythical creature represented the eternity of matter and the concept of reconciling apparent opposites. However, it was also sometimes interpreted as a symbol of foolishness, going in circles, or irrational behavior.

Non-linear and magical thinking about time was the foundation of many indigenous and pre-Enlightenment epistemologies. Today, the figure of the Ouroboros reappears in the philosophy of Timothy Morton, who advocates replacing linear and rational thinking with complexity, looping, and ambiguities. Strangeness becomes the principle of the present. The hybrid form of the man-serpent is a model for all beings that are tragically intertwined with other, non-human existences and processes of varying scales. There is no escape from the loop, no emancipation or control over it. It’s time, then, to learn how to dance in circles.

Branas works closely with the surrounding material, experimenting with his own techniques and using natural materials and objects found in the botanical garden, in allotments, during beach walks, or in vegetable markets in the El Raval district. He creates comets from supermarket brochures, ancient masks from fruit peels, and archetypal figures from found plants and sticks. His works emerge as the result of experiments and performances in which the artist incorporates natural processes—such as the passage of time, solar energy, vegetation, or decay. Branas takes on the roles of botanist, ethnographer, and inventor, and sometimes a cosmic trickster. Using multiple cultural codes, he creates a visual narrative about the potential for transformation and the sweetness of stagnation, which can be interpreted on personal, ecocritical, or political levels.

Curated by Michalina Sablik
Partners: CasCaDas ArtSpace, Adam Mickiewicz Institute & Krupa Art Foundation

Documentation: Eva Carasol