Paweł Bownik

Since 2016, photographer Paweł Bownik has documented clothes on display in museum collections and exhibitions throughout Poland, Belarus, and Russia. While he uses some conventional cataloging practices—a gray background and neutral lighting—he subverts these standards by turning the garments inside out and exposing otherwise hidden details. This act provokes questions about identity, the wearer’s subjectivity, and established cultural narratives.

Source: PRZEKRÓJ Foundation.

Paweł Bownik, Reverse (Roma performing dress, 1950s), Museum of Ethnography in Tarnów/Poland, Inkjet print on archival paper, Overall: 71 1/4 × 55 1/8in. (181 × 140cm), Courtesy of the artist, Janów Lubelski, Poland

Paweł Bownik, Reverse (attire of a shamaness, Siberia, Yenisey Province, 19th/20th cent.), Inkjet print on archival paper, Overall: 68 1/8 × 51 3/16in. (173 × 130cm), Courtesy of the artist, Janów Lubelski, Poland

EXHIBITIONS // EXCHANGES // MEDIA

Katita and James backstage after a performance of Nutcracker Ballet, from the series Balancing Acts

WARSAW 2022

Paweł Bownik

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