Waiting Rooms of Architecture

Malgorzata Maria Olchowska

Olchowska approaches architecture in its purest form, as a mental exercise for imagining the past and future of places. Through her print work, she shows that architecture is a cultural practice that goes beyond purely building. There is no difference in her work method. Olchowska: ‘Whether it’s a drawing, scale model or screen print, I approach each project in the same way as a design for a building. First comes the sketch, then the execution phase and finally the moment when you show your creation to the public.’

Architect and graphic designer

Olchowska trained as an architect and graphic designer. She makes models, drawings and collages for architectural firms, representing their designs. For instance, she has worked with architects Jan De Vylder and Inge Vinck as well as with Bovenbouw Architectuur on numerous projects. In 2012, her work was featured in the Canvas Collection. Vanished City (2019) was Olchowska’s first solo exhibition at De Singel, where she showed architecture as a witness to time. In 2020 she collaborated on the exhibition and accompanying publication Open Call: 20 Years of Public Architecture, and in 2021 she played an essential role in the creation of the model landscape Composite Presence, the exhibition in the Belgian pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale.

Assembled (urban) landscapes

For Olchowska, houses, streets and squares have different layers of meaning. ‘The structures you see tell you something about a city’s past and future. The way we view these places changes a lot over time and often depends on the zeitgeist.’ A recurring theme in her work is ‘the landscape’. Over the years, she has focused on studying different types of landscapes and their temporariness. Olchowska: ‘I gradually started assembling existing urban landscapes into a kind of new anonymous city that is nevertheless recognizable.’ The perception of recognizability combined with the collective memory is something that fascinates her: ‘Our brain sees something and reconstructs it based on things we’ve seen or experienced in the past. My work emerges in the same way. It is made up of constructed images.’

exhibition

Waiting rooms of architecture

For the exhibition Waiting Rooms for Architecture, Olchowska seeks to connect with places where the history of the Red Star Line buildings is most tangible. In the large shed, where passengers stored their luggage, you will discover many artworks that interact with objects from the museum collection. Photos and postcards, taken or sent by emigrants, resonate with the artist’s prints of constructed landscapes. Depending on their own memories, each viewer recognizes different elements in these landscapes. The sculpture of Saïf Lama’a (aka Dumuzi), who had to flee Syria when ISIS emerged in 2015, enters into dialogue with the black-and-white photographs of ships in the exhibition scenography. The film I Am Not Going to Cry shows luggage or cargo in the form of building elements. They symbolize the endless tearing down and rebuilding of European cities. In addition, at some carefully chosen places in the museum rooms, you will see historical photos that make the connection with the place where you are standing today. Discover the models from the Vanished City series and let your imagination run loose. Time becomes tangible in this exhibition. Experience the layers that make up buildings and cities through the generations that bravely helped to build them, waiting for what follows.

book

Waiting Rooms of Architecture

In parallel with the exhibition, a book of the same name is being published, Waiting Rooms of Architecture. The book is built around an essay by Vlad Ionescu (Faculty of Architecture and Arts, PXL/Uhasselt) in which the author reflects on the work of Malgorzata Maria Olchowska from 2009 to today. This text is complemented and illustrated by a picture essay in which Olchowska goes over her work of the past five years. The design is done by Ward Heirwegh.