Cecilia Malik (b. 1975), Beaver from the Shtoly, an unconcerned object; 2022

Board, acrylic; 77 x 47 cm
Signed on the back: Cecylia Malik/ Beaver from above the Shtola/ object from happening ,,Let's give back the water to the Shtola"/ River Sisters & Cecylia Malik 2022.

Polish artist, performer, environmental activist, educator, curator of contemporary art, academic lecturer, filmmaker. She graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Cracow where she received a diploma with distinction in Prof. Leszek Misiak's studio and postgraduate curatorial studies at Jagiellonian University. In 2002 she was awarded the scholarship of the Mayor of the City of Cracow for Young Artists. She co-founded the "Art Farm", an art institution that is a common platform for artists and curators. Founder of the Center for Contemporary Art Squirrel, collectives: Mothers of Polish Women in Logging and Sisters of the River. In 2018, she was awarded the Katarzyna Kobro Prize. She is the author of "6 Rivers" (2012), "Paradise on Earth" (2015) and "Sister Rivers" (2021). In her work, Cecilia Malik combines happening and performance with themes dedicated to community building and attention to the environment. Her works have been exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw, the Zderzak gallery, the Bunkier Sztuki gallery in Krakow, the University of Rochester in the USA, the Krakow House in Nuremberg, the Kunstverein zu Assenheim and the Abbey Museum in Tyniec, among others. The artist's works can be found, among others, in the collection of the Bunkier Art Gallery or the Museo de Arte Contenporared de Castilla y Leon as well as many private collections at home and abroad.

"Give back the water to the Shtole!", Bukowno, 29.01.2022. protest-performance against the liquidation of the Shtole river drying up due to the neglect of the nearby zinc and lead mine's exploitation. The beaver was the object presented during the performance, along with other animals, and was meant to harness the losses suffered by the entire ecosystem of the river. This rodent, by the way, is a particularly beloved animal among the River Sisters, because it retains water wonderfully, naturally preventing drought. One of the most famous educational and river basin slogans is precisely "Good morning! Only beavers build on rivers!".