Cross of Hesitation, videoperformance 8'40'', objects 170x20x2 cm
The object I created is a cross, whose arms move under the movement of my body. The work explores the theme of spirituality by reflecting on the Christian symbol of the cross particularly prevalent in the landscape of Polish villages and cities.
Religiosity imposed by tradition can take the form of oppression, especially against women living in smaller, patriarchal communities.
The personal layer of the work is important to me – the moving cross acts as a seismograph of hesitations, doubts, and personal struggles, in light of which the idea of ultimate identification with an immutable symbol seems impossible.
“The Cross of Hesistation” is one of my first works in which I reworked the subject of spirituality from the perspective of a woman raised in the countryside. Deconstructing the religious schema in which I lived for many years, I turned to a non-institutional experience, free from hierarchy and dogmatic frameworks. Creating the work is an important act of spiritual emancipation for me and a disagreement with the closed, institutional religiosity I experienced. It provides me with a starting point for further exploration of spirituality through art.