Frank Kwiatkowski holding one of his
cone cut prints (now part of Gregory Ego's privately-held collection of Kwiatkowski artwork).
With oft-present syringe in practically
every one of his visionary, dystopian etchings, Frank Kwiatkowski is
an indefatigable diabetic if there ever was one, going all out to
literally and figuratively illustrate how a wrecked health care
system has left him a wreck. He's a street artist who quite visibly
puts his woes out to the world in visually-arresting, shocking,
amusing ways. The primary “gallery” for his poster series, The Kwiatkowski Press: on dumpsters, street poles. His medium: etchings used for
printmaking which are cut into the backs of heisted, segmented,
orange safety cones; the etchings are then inked and pressed onto
paper or cut-up shards of the orange cones themselves.
It's been noted that, historically in
art, wood block artists have often dealt in religious or political
subject matter. Arguably, Frank's safety-cone artwork treads both
those grounds, as well: think images of a martyred saint facing the
slings and sharp-syringe arrows of the mismanaged
health management system, or insular and prisoner-like within his
costly bottle of life-sustaining insulin. It's Kwiatkowski's
agitprop-with-attitude that has spurred me to serially photo document
each discovery that I make of his art in shadowy Denver alleyways and
on grotty street corners.
1 comment:
Fascinating!
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