2025
performance

costume: Paweł Włodarski

In the early 1990s, when Cricoland was established at People’s Meeting Square, carousels arrived there from all over Europe. The Tricity finally gained a grand amusement park, full of bright, colourful attractions for children and adults alike. Yet it was also a place where not only machines provided entertainment: at the very heart of Cricoland lived an enslaved, living creature – the Bear.

Its cage was so small that the animal could only stand. All around it: chaos, a cacophony of sounds, and crowds of people. The agitated, terrified Bear became an object, a symbol of entertainment – no different in the owners’ eyes from the Ferris wheel or other rides. Like the machines, it was meant to amuse and to generate profit.

Kacper Szalecki divides his performance Landscape with the Bear into two acts. On the first day of the festival, the artist becomes a source of amusement for the public, taking on the cultural role of the carnival bear – a costumed performer from folk festivities. A living mascot. On the second day, the fur changes: this act is dedicated to transformation and the reversal of the gaze. The artist ceases to entertain the audience and instead seeks rest for himself. He relaxes, he plays – his actions become an attempt to embody repose.

Through this performative gesture, the artist draws attention to the exploitation of both humans and animals in the entertainment industry. Szalecki’s performance seeks to evoke the memory – the afterimage – of the Bear. Its figure becomes a symbol of a broader discussion about how labour exploits and consumes both human and animal bodies.

trigger warning: cruelty towards animals

KACPER SZALECKI is a visual artist, performer and cultural worker. He graduated in new media and digital culture from the University of Łódź. Since 2015, much of his work has developed the imaginary of Potopia – a pink-and-yellow state that provides an entry point into the language of subsequent objects, performances, films and installations. His works often incorporate found and second-hand materials, as well as museum artefacts and the works of other artists. In recent years, his practice has been shaped by an interest in experimental choreography and dance.