Text by Anna J. Kutor

Tropical Dreams

Up until the dawn of the 21st century, only heavily intoxicated youngsters rolling out of beach-themed bars ever experienced the feeling of tropical tranquility in Warsaw. Then, out of a clear blue sky, came a life-sized replica of a palm tree in the city's main thoroughfares allowing even super-sober citizens a chance to enjoy a slice of coastal "chillin" (should they squint their eyes during sunset and image lying on the beach with a cocktail in hand). Perched on the intersection of Aleje Jerozolimskie (Jerusalem Avenue) and Nowy Swiat (New World), this 15 metre-high exotic tree, most akin to a Canary date palm, was created by Bydgoszcz-born visual artist Joanna Rajkowska after a journey through Israel in 2002. Adding diversity, colour and a generous helping of absurdity to the historic boulevard, Rajkowska's pseudo-organic palm project (originally named "Greetings from Jerusalem Avenue) symbolises Warsaw's rough-and-tumble past as well as its changing character.

The city, as the artist explains, has to be flexible and open in the sense of readiness to accept diverse meaning, diverse identities and it has to be able to adapt itself to the changing needs of its inhabitants. In her opinion, the Palm has become a kind of energy centre or container for otherness in the sense of its ability to open up possibilities.

Neon Flock

If Rudolf, the red-nosed reindeer, would be on the look out for a like-minded flock to join up with, the trio of pink glowing deer on the banks of the Vistula River near Warsaw's University Library would probably top his list. Visual artists and refined kitsch-lovers Hanna Kokczyńska and Luiza Marklowska dreamt up the whimsical urban art installation for the Warsaw Metro in 2004, only to be executed at the river-side location by funds provided by the Vattenfall company. Part of the charm of the psychedelic plastic herd is their freshness and adventurousness which marks a radical departure from the pack of concrete statues carved into the likeness of long-dead rulers and bronze figures commemorating saints and religious leaders.

"The deer will be happy to pose for photos, you can pet them and scratch their ears and by night they will bath the area in bright pink light," explain the Warsaw-based creative tandem. The duo appreciate and mimics the optimism and easiness of deer who live a laid-back daily ritual involving seven hours of rumination, seven hours of consumption, three hours of sleep and the rest restricted to private endeavours. These critter creations also refer to a little-known local legend about a Mazowian Prince who spared the life of a magical deer in return for fresh water and safe navigation through the labyrinth forest surroundings. (Note: Due to vandalism, the statues are currently under renovation)

Flight of Fancy

Cyclists have difficulty maintaining balance, drivers stop and stare, pedestrians keep snapping photos and they put a smile on everyone's face. The cause of all this cheerfulness is Pegasuses, the latest alfresco art installations to grace the capital. A five-piece masterpiece featuring vibrantly coloured winged horses in the courtyard of the Krasiński Palace, Pegasuses is the brainchild of designer duo Beata Konarska and Paweł Konarski. It temporary project (on display through May) commissioned by the National Library on the occasion of a Mediterranean-inspired exhibition honouring Polish poet Zbigniew Herbert. These eye-catching figures, each over three metres high and four metres long, are made from painted sheet metal weighing 500 kilogrammes in total. The mystical herd, as the designer's describe, brought a cheerful and positive energy to the area. At nighttime the fronts of the mythical creatures are bathed in festive lights, giving them a compelling look that is hypnotic and otherworldly.

Animal Art

Hidden in the depths of Praski Park, amongst the wide variety of flora and fauna, sharp-eyed visitors can spot a scattering of artful animals. Made of steel and stone, these well weathered creatures signal the closeness of their flesh-and-blood counterparts in Poland's oldest zoo. A chunky bison, a miniature elephant and other cuddly characters make up the creative crew, which is led by the 5 metre tall metal giraffe wistfully looking out over the trees. The playful steel structure was brought into being by sculptor Władysław Frycz and donated to the park in 1981.

Brass Beats

In Praga, Warsaw's arty east-side suburb, a brassy street musician act electrifies the air with the sound of music. Despite being a solid setup with a steady repertoire of songs and a fair bit of experience under their belts, the Kapela Podwórkowa assemble won't bellow their street beats or even move until they've been paid. The collectives' no-pay-no-play policy has more to do with their stringent structure than any assertion of artistic ego as the five-member brass band is actually cast in brass.

This noisy monument, standing on the cobblestone corner of Kłopotowskiego and Florianska streets, was sculpted by local artist Andrzej Renes in 2006. These true-to-life figures pay tribute to an iconic pre-war band comprising of a drummer, guitarist, violinist, a mandolin and an accordion player. To make them perform, music-lovers must send a text message to the number 7141 with the text KAPELA and then select a tune from the 100-strong play list of patriotic classics such as "It's Possible to Like Warsaw" and "Bridge on the Left, Bridge on the Right". In an instant, the brass-bound orchestra with burst into song - well, actually, the secret speakers will just turn on.

Arachnid in the Air

For those, like me, whose top 10 list of freaky nightmares includes being ambushed by a giant hairy spider and then being turned into a brain-dead zombie by its venom should probably be warned about the oversized tarantula replica hanging above the entrance of W Oparach Absurdu (In the Fumes of Absurdity ), one of Warsaw's coolest and most Bohemian bars. A cheeky and seriously sinister symbol, this black mischief-maker was fastened to the venue's facade by its owner, Elżbieta Komorowska, an actress and artists who purchased the homemade pesky creature from a street vendor. It's surreal, stately and satirical - just like its working-class neighbourhood, Praga, which has shed its former shady image to become the centre of artistic creativity in Warsaw. Beyond the hair-raising gate keeper, the bar's interior is also flushed with eccentric ornaments ranging from glow-in-the-dark religious icons to blue liquors stored in sperm-shaped tubes. If you need some help soothing frayed nerves, sample the Spider Drink, a colourful concoction made up of vodka, black currant and banana.

Urban Upgrade

"I love big cities - it's a natural environment for me and it’s the most complex space and challenging background for art," says Kamila Szejnoch, maker of interactive installations for urban spaces. "Public space is more real and inspiring and in it art somehow feels more palpable than autonomous art closed amongst white walls of a gallery".

Engaging the city's inhabitants in a direct dialogue with contemporary art is the aim of Szejnoch, a young urban artist living in the Polish capital. Completing her artistic studies at the sculpture department at Warsaw's Academy of Fine Arts in 2004 she turned her focus on urban designs and continued her education at the Dutch Art Institute in the Netherlands. For her artistic endeavours, she has received a variety of awards and grants, including a year-long artistic scholarship from the Polish Ministry of Culture in 2007 and a grant from the Swiss Government for artistic development in Switzerland in 2008. Over time, she has become increasingly fascinated with monuments and areas closely linked to history, religion and ideology.

"Most of my works consist of two main elements. One is historical, traditional or closed in its form, while the second one is more contemporary, open, playful, and interactive," she says, "I have been trying to update, ridicule and just evoke outdated layers of the past by adding something new, contrasting and distinct from their original style or function." Building a bridge between the past and the present been the focus of her latest Warsaw-based project "Carousel, Slide and Swing", a three piece installation that adding perky and witty elements to outdated war-memorial monuments in Praga, effectively turning the symbolic sculptures into giant toys. "There are several "dead" memorials in Warsaw that served communist propaganda to commemorate Polish-Soviet brotherhood in arms and liberation of Warsaw in 1945. With this project I wanted to say something to those grim monuments with their closed form and distorted message."

The first part of the project to be designed and engineered was 'Swing', winner of the Szpilman Award 2008 rewarding temporary works of art, in which the colossal bronze statue of the soldier commemorating the 1st Tadeusz Kościuszko Infantry Division was appointed a tiny red swing. The installation was roundly criticized by city officials and war veterans as being frivolous and inappropriate, so permits were yanked and the six-day project into an 'illegal' evening of fun. "For me, this statue is a communist propaganda monument from the former era but for the Berlin Army soldier's point of view it is a well-deserved homage to their sacrifice. This is the best example how much history can differ in the perspective of individual and collective memories, and my aim was to highlight the dissonance and complexity of this situation."

Street Spirit

A large-scale public art project entitled "Praga - Right Side of the Vistula River" has birthed a sizable collection of art installations that will add some much-needed humour and whimsy to the streets and squares of Warsaw's Praga precinct. The works, currently on display on the grounds of the Koneser Vodka Factory, were fabricated mostly from found objects and inexpensive weathered materials, including recycled woods and metals. Just inside the factory's Gothic gateway stands "Amy", a textured wooden replica of troubled British singer Amy Winehouse carved from a single tree trunk by artist Józef Nowak. Near the songstress lies a frail figure, "The Thinker" by Stefan Sławiński, falling from his steel frame and crumbling under the weight of his own tangled troubles. There's also a eerie duo of wooden figures designed by Marcin Rząs. Positioned on the corner of the brick-clad factory, the no-name couple - each facing a different direction - is bound together by their proximity and faceless nature, yet they feel separate and distant.

Perhaps the most striking structure in the group is "Horse Market" as named by its creator Jan Kubicki, features an aggressively posing silhouette of a larger-than-life horse pieced together from all kinds of rusting metal rods and crumpled sheets of steel. Behind the combative pony, there's a cluster of overtly-modern metal artwork compiled from pipe parts and metal mesh as well as a monster-sized chess set all waiting to be escorted to their final resting place.

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