Żalki, 2007

Krzysztof Sołowiej’s Żalki is an outdoor sculpture installed in 2007 in Poznań’s Cytadela Park as part of the Poznań City of Art project. The work is located in direct proximity to Magdalena Abakanowicz’s Unrecognized.

Like other works by the artist, this piece carries a symbolic dimension. Its title derives from an Old Slavic word referring to pre-Christian, earthen burial mounds. In this way, the artist references the history of the Citadel, embedding his work in reflections on the past present within this site.

The sculptures are directly integrated into the landscape — two slender, twin cast-iron figures stand among the trees, without pedestals, on bare ground. They are accompanied by a circle of small vessels and a partially buried container adorned with distinctive knobs on its belly, evoking forms known from the graves of the Lusatian culture.

The work was created in cooperation with the Wielkopolska Society for the Encouragement of Fine Arts.