15.
10.
2024.
Department
DOP
DOP
Aleksandra Skowrońska, a photography graduate, received the Konrad Pustoła Memorial Scholarship for her HEDA project, which addresses the issue of the identity of Chechen women.
The Konrad Pustoła Memorial Scholarship Council composed of: Piotr Gruszczyński, Aleksandra Wieliczko (2023 Scholarship winner), Zbigniew Libera, Karolina Ochab, Wojtek Pustoła and Igor Stokfiszewski decided to award this year's scholarship to Ola Skowrońska for the HEDA project.
Justification:
The Heda project deserves the Konrad Pustoła Award because it deeply reflects key themes which were central to Pustoła's own work, such as social justice, human rights, and the invisible consequences of political conflicts. In it, Skowrońska explores the lives of Chechen refugee women, their struggle for identity, belonging, and equality, which resonates with Pustoła's interests in subordinate and marginalized groups in society.
H E D A
The project combines personal and collective elements, like Pustoła’s work, transforming individual stories into symbols of broader social processes. It is not just about documenting the history of migration and oppression—it is a reflection on the plight of women caught between the cultural expectations of their native countries and the rejection of host societies.
"The starting point for the Heda project was born out of thousands of text messages that I exchanged over the years with one of my closest friends, an anthropology graduate from Chechnya, currently living in Moscow. Our initial idea – back in 2019 – was to combine anthropological research and artistic activities to create a documentary project about the oppression of women in the restrictive culture of post-war Chechnya. The implementation of this plan was first prevented by the pandemic, and then by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Meeting became impossible: "I could not enter Russia, and she could not leave," says the author.
The scholarship competition is addressed to photographers who, with their sensitivity, organize the world of unbearably manipulative politics, reaching the essence of events in their works and activities, and giving meaning to events with critical and selective awareness. The organizers of the Scholarship are Krytyka Polityczna and the New Actions Foundation whose aim is to promote the work of Konrad Pustoła so that it can inspire young artists.
More information about the project and the scholarship: krytykapolityczna.pl/kultura/sztuki-wizualne/stypendium-pamieci-konrada-pustoly-dla-oli-skow...
Congratulations to Ola!
Justification:
The Heda project deserves the Konrad Pustoła Award because it deeply reflects key themes which were central to Pustoła's own work, such as social justice, human rights, and the invisible consequences of political conflicts. In it, Skowrońska explores the lives of Chechen refugee women, their struggle for identity, belonging, and equality, which resonates with Pustoła's interests in subordinate and marginalized groups in society.
H E D A
The project combines personal and collective elements, like Pustoła’s work, transforming individual stories into symbols of broader social processes. It is not just about documenting the history of migration and oppression—it is a reflection on the plight of women caught between the cultural expectations of their native countries and the rejection of host societies.
"The starting point for the Heda project was born out of thousands of text messages that I exchanged over the years with one of my closest friends, an anthropology graduate from Chechnya, currently living in Moscow. Our initial idea – back in 2019 – was to combine anthropological research and artistic activities to create a documentary project about the oppression of women in the restrictive culture of post-war Chechnya. The implementation of this plan was first prevented by the pandemic, and then by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Meeting became impossible: "I could not enter Russia, and she could not leave," says the author.
The scholarship competition is addressed to photographers who, with their sensitivity, organize the world of unbearably manipulative politics, reaching the essence of events in their works and activities, and giving meaning to events with critical and selective awareness. The organizers of the Scholarship are Krytyka Polityczna and the New Actions Foundation whose aim is to promote the work of Konrad Pustoła so that it can inspire young artists.
More information about the project and the scholarship: krytykapolityczna.pl/kultura/sztuki-wizualne/stypendium-pamieci-konrada-pustoly-dla-oli-skow...
Congratulations to Ola!