Two murals by Polish artists have been shortlisted for the prestigious Best of 2024 Street Art Cities prize after wowing a panel of international muralists.
One in the southern city of Racibórz, titled ‘Miejski Podwieczorek’ (‘Urban afternoon tea’), depicts a family sitting around a candlelit dinner table heaped with fruit, wine, chocolate and snacks and has been lauded for its hyper-realistic and three-dimensional style.
Its creator, artist Ryszard Paurowski, said: “The mural shows a young host, his wife and child entertaining an older friend for evening tea to celebrate a good vintage of wine.
Its creator, artist Ryszard Paurowski, said: “The mural shows a young host, his wife and child entertaining an older friend for evening tea to celebrate a good vintage of wine.
“Their meeting around the table symbolizes equality between generations, whilst the table is a metaphor for time—although we are born at different points, we exist on the same axis.”
He added: “Eating meals together is a good way to honor traditions whilst creating new ones—moreover, the mural is enriched by props that relate to the history of Racibórz, although their ambiguous presentation encourages viewers to independently discover their relevance.”
In the 19th century, the city was famed for producing goods such as chocolates, cigars and wine.
Unveiled at the end of April, the mural has been joined on the shortlist by another Polish creation located in Wuppertal, Germany.
Titled ‘King of Nothing,’ the artwork was authored by BEZT, a mural artist from the Poland-based Etam Cru collective.
He added: “Eating meals together is a good way to honor traditions whilst creating new ones—moreover, the mural is enriched by props that relate to the history of Racibórz, although their ambiguous presentation encourages viewers to independently discover their relevance.”
In the 19th century, the city was famed for producing goods such as chocolates, cigars and wine.
Unveiled at the end of April, the mural has been joined on the shortlist by another Polish creation located in Wuppertal, Germany.
Titled ‘King of Nothing,’ the artwork was authored by BEZT, a mural artist from the Poland-based Etam Cru collective.
In their appraisal, the jurors wrote: “BEZT, a.k.a. Mateusz Gapski from Turek, [Central Poland], is one of the world’s most sought-after mural artists. BEZT is known for his fantastical, dream-like murals that generally feature realistic portraits of humans, floral motifs and melancholic animals.”
Debuting in Autumn, ‘King of Nothing’ typifies BEZT’s output, presenting as it does a faceless figure hunched on a chair with a cloth enigmatically drawn over his head.
Both murals will now compete against 24 other nominees in an “artist’s choice category” to be decided via a public poll.
Debuting in Autumn, ‘King of Nothing’ typifies BEZT’s output, presenting as it does a faceless figure hunched on a chair with a cloth enigmatically drawn over his head.
Both murals will now compete against 24 other nominees in an “artist’s choice category” to be decided via a public poll.
More In Culture MORE...
