Works of art by Edward Dwurnik and Pola Dwurnik will be featured in the Norblin Factory


28 April 2021

A very unusual piece of urban art is being created at the moment at the intersection of Żelazna and Prosta Streets, on the southern wall of the former metal science laboratory of the Norblin Factory. This will be a mural presenting a painting of one of the most renowned Polish painters and graphic artists – Edward Dwurnik. The artist’s foundation, represented and led by his daughter – Pola Dwurnik, a visual artist, is supervising the process of creating this work. Pola Dwurnik will also create her original work of art, which will be displayed in the revitalized complex.

The works on the mural began on April 19th – the day marking the 78th birth anniversary of Edward Dwurnik, whose entire private life and professional activity were related to Warsaw. The artist, who died more than two years ago, will be honored with a unique mural with an area of 90 square meters. It will contain a carefully recreated painting named “Norblin Factory” created by Edward Dwurnik in 2009, scaled to the size of the wall. This piece of art is a part of a larger series entitled “Warsaw”, which presents the most interesting and most important places for the artist in the capital, seen from a bird’s eye view, and highlights all the most distinctive features of his work.

– I am convinced that my dad would be very happy if he could see this project. It is a great honor and a beautiful venue for such exhibition of his work. The very content of this image allows for many interesting interpretations, especially in the context of the character that this place will have after the revitalization. Surrounded by a blue city that flows with its current, the factory is a living, but permanent element, depicted in warm colors. It is a kind of a “city within a city”, a point of reference that remains there despite the passage of timesays Pola Dwurnik, a visual artist and a painter, president of the Edward Dwurnik Foundation.

The mural is painted on a historic building at the intersection of Prosta and Żelazna Streets, the history of which dates back to the end of the 19th century. Built in 1885, it was initially used as a residential building, and at the same time as a warehouse and a pantry. After World War II, it housed a chemical laboratory. The building survived both wars almost unchanged – until 1963, when Prosta Street was widened and the entire southern wing was torn down. During conservation and restoration works in the process of the revitalization of the Norblin Factory, the original sloping roof and the facade detail of the eastern, western and northern walls were reconstructed.

The mural is being created by a specialized groupnamed Red Sheels, consisting of only female painters, monument conservators and architects. They all have great experience in creating large-format paintings in unusual places that require special precision – their works are situated, for example, on the wall of a functioning penitentiary, or at the top of the mining shaft in the “Zofiówka” mine. Red Sheels also specialize in murals carrying a socially significant message, supporting issues such as women’s and minority rights, or environmental protection. The project prepared for the Norblin Factory will also have an additional, ecological aspect. The paints used fof this work are produced in a photocatalytic technology. When in the sunlight, the component contained in them neutralizes harmful pollutants, so the entire surface of the mural will clean the air it gets. 

– We are extremely proud that we can permanently include the work of such an outstanding artist as Edward Dwurnik in our investment project. We are also very happy that we are implementing this project together with his daughter Pola, an excellent artist and painter, who is preparing her own painting especially for us. We want every person entering this area to feel that it is a place buzzing with art, where artists and their works are present literally at every corner. Unique murals, art galleries, venues with live music and concerts, a unique boutique cinema – these are only a fraction of the valuable cultural offer we have prepared for our visitors – says Kinga Nowakowska, operational director and member of the management board of the Capital Park Group, responsible for the revitalization of the Norblin Factory.

The art of Pola Dwurnik – a painter, a graphic and visual artist, whose works are featured in such places as the National Museum in Gdańsk, the MOCAK Museum of Contemporary Art in Kraków, the MWW Wrocław Contemporary Museum and in many private collections of contemporary art collectors, will be also present in the Norblin Factory. The artist is currently working on a painting dedicated to this place. It will also be located in the revitalized complex and will occupy an exhibition area of approximately 20 sq.m.

– I want my monumental painting to surprise the visitors, so at the moment I cannot reveal any details about its subject. However, it will be the largest realization in my artistic career so far. One of the main assumptions of this project is playing with perspective – the image will give a completely different impression when seen closely, with details, and its subsequent aspects will reveal when the viewer walks away a bit further and looks at it from a greater distance adds Pola Dwurnik.

The Norblin factory, revitalized at the initiative of the Capital Park Group, will be launched soon – in the second half of this year. The new venue will provide over 65,000 sq.m. of area, 41,000 sq.m. of which are offices, and the remaining 24,000 sq.m. will be filled with entertainment, food, service, retail, culture and wellness concepts. Among the tenants of the revitalized Norblin Factory, there will be Biobazar – the first marketplace in Poland selling only eco products and a foodhall with 26 restaurant concepts (3,200 sq.m.). The revitalized factory will also become a destination for cultural experiences. Apart from the abovementioned boutique cinema with seven screens (3,300 sq.m.), whose content partner will be the Directors Guild of Poland, there will be Piano Bar with live music (408 sq.m.) and a music and concert venue in one of the historical buildings. The first fully interactive and digital art gallery in Poland, ART BOX Experience, will occupy the space of nearly 800 sq.m. The office part of the complex will be a seat of such tenants as Allegro.pl (16,200 sq.m.) and the Global Business Services Center Japan Tobacco International (8,500 sq.m.). 

Capital Park Group is the investor and originator of the revitalization of the Norblin Factory. PRC Architekci studio is responsible for the architectural design. The main contractor is Warbud SA, in cooperation with Soletanche Polska, Maat4 and TKT Engineering. Monument Service is responsible for activities related to the conservation of monuments.

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Pola Dwurnik 

A visual artist born in 1979 in Warsaw. The main areas of her artistic activity are oil painting, various forms of drawing and lithography. She is the author of eight art books, the most famous of which is “Girl on Canvas” – a collection of original interpretations of her paintings by such authors as Olga Tokarczuk, Maria Poprzęcka, Maria Anna Potocka, Michał Jachuła, Piotr Lachmann and others. Pola Dwurnik’s works belong to the collections of the National Museum in Gdańsk, the MOCAK Museum of Contemporary Art in Kraków, the MWW Wrocław Contemporary Museum and to private collections around the world.

Edward Dwurnik

One of the most famous and characteristic Polish visual artists. He was born on April 19, 1943 in Radzymin near Warsaw, died on October 28, 2018 in his home in Warsaw’s Sadyba district. In the period of 1963-1970, he studied painting, sculpture and graphics at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. Already during his studies, he began to create extensive painting series, the most famous of which are “Hitchhiking” showing cities from a bird-eye view, “Sportsmen” and “Workers”, which are a critical and satirical portrait of Poles from the communist era. The other important series by this artist are “The Way to the East” dedicated to the victims of Stalinism, “From December to June”, a tribute to the victims of the martial law in Poland, and sea landscapes from the “Blue” series. Edward Dwurnik is also the author of several thousand drawings and graphics. The painter’s legacy has been taken care of by the Edward Dwurnik Foundation, established by the artist’s family in 2019.

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