The presence of Natalia LL in art is characterised by her active, research-focused attitude, which seems to be oriented not so much towards the sustained achievement of goals, but towards the exploration of new perspectives. Such an orientation requires continuous re-establishment of the critical attitude of the artist, whose sensitivity to external impulses shifts the attention towards the structures of her creative analysis which constitutes a sophisticated commentary, not devoid of irony.
The sustained intellectual mobilisation allows the artist to maintain this degree of independence of the formal language of her expression, without penchant for attractive decorativeness.
It seems that the unyielding attitude towards the reality of art and life, visible in the work of Natalia LL, does not reąuire special effort on her part. Instead, it flows from the internal hierarchy of rules which filter the elements belonging to the external sphere and, perhaps more importantly, remains in harmony with the untamed “nature”, i.e. the way in which the artist experiences processes taking place within her own personality.
This independent attitude defines the relationship between the artistic “self’ and the real life, determined by both an extremely individual attitude towards life and an extremely individual language in which it is expressed.
Thanks to the crystal-clear definition of rules, both the creative self-focus and the introduction of specifically calculated and experienced body play into the area where art and life meet yields a material untouched by compromise, whose features can be projected onto far more comprehensive sets. The same type of material is used also in the actions based on representation – notional operations using substitute portrait, with the participation of a model who is hired to perform tasks, representing the author.
This approach reveals the strength and certainty of the artist, who is able to strictly bind the perception of art to the perception of her own self.
The “femininity” of works created by Natalia LL, which has been stressed on numerous occasions, is especially striking, not necessarily because it relates to the popular concept of fight for the femininity, but mainly because the artist is so suggestive in her struggle for art purged of all compromise.
Wojciech Krukowski
Director of CCA
Centrum Sztuki Współczesnej, Warszawa 30.10 – 27.12.1998.