“…it allows itself to be heard like a wedding melody coming from the blue atmosphere, quiet yet lively, uniquely enchanti ng, lulling the heart and soul, lazy, in a faint, and like a source of living blood, rhythmically uneven in pulses, bleeding like a fresh wound: — a melodic sound from the Polish soil, rocked by pain and pleasure.” ‘The Wedding’ by Stanisław Wyspiański.

The moti ve of the chochol dance illustrated above is meant to visualize the malaise and lethargy of the Polish nati on. I wanted to refer to the powerlessness and helplessness in which we have been stuck since 2015. It was then that our nati on sold itself f or a few pieces of silver. Half-conscious, we are sti ll dancing, starti ng to bleed. The chochol dance symbolizes not only passivity but also a chance for rebirth. Aft er all, the chochol covered plants only for the winter, and in spring, trees and shrubs came back to life. The symbolism of this fi gure also has a positi ve resonance and signifi es hope that we will wake up and regain independence. (The visual form references Henri Mati sse’s work – ‘The Dance’.)

Kamila J Gruss
Słupsk 25/10/2023