Polish art on show in Dunfermline

THREE West Fife artists are showing their works at an exhibition which celebrates Scottish and Polish culture and arts.

Stephen Ratomski and Karol Cebula, both of Dunfermline, and Aimee Bogacz, from Dalgety Bay, will be participating in Witamy! – Polish for “welcome” – which brings together Polish artists and Scottish artists with Polish links.

The exhibition, at the Lochgelly Centre Galleries, opened last week and will run until 5th December.

It has been organised by the Fife Polish Arts Group, with the support of the Arts and Theatre Trust Fife.

This will be the third exhibition for the arts group, which held its first in Cafe Fresh, Dunfermline, in 2005, and Mr Ratomski, its founder, said he was “extremely excited”.

He said, “What’s exciting about it is that it’s contemporary arts and there’s a whole range of different artworks, from site-specific work to films.

“It’s not the normal exhibition that you get. It’s about absorbing influences and exploring different values and different cultural identities.”

Mr Ratomski, who also chairs the Fife Dunfermline Print Workshop, is exhibiting paintings and collages.

He added, “The artists are using a variety of media to express themselves – video and film, music, 3D, painting, collage and constructed textiles.

“I believe very strongly that Witamy! will benefit the local community by promoting intercultural contact, cooperation and friendship between ourselves and Polish immigrants living and working in Fife.

“It’s also extending the development of local, national and international artistic partnerships and enriching the experience and practice of local artists.

“The artists involved with Fife Polish Arts Group certainly find the cultural exchanges between the two countries very stimulating.”

Karol Cebula, who teaches art and design and St Columba’s High School, is showing his CD of contemporary music called “Bzdura! Nonsense!”.

He has also made an art film on Pittenweem and a mixed media work called The Memory Man.

Aimee Bogacz, a graduate of the Edinburgh College of Art, is a former pupil of Inverkeithing High School and is involved in an art project, Fizzy Milk, at the school.

Her short animation, “Angel Bounce”, will be projected on the exterior of the centre on Saturday.

Visitors also have the opportunity to enjoy Polish food, listen to readings and music recitals on Saturday. The event starts at 2pm and continues at intervals until 9pm.

The exhibition also features a photographic selection by members of the Fife Polish Association, Most, and an arts cafe which replicates the underground ones that flourished in Warsaw.

Witamy! is open from 9am-9pm Monday to Friday and 9.30am to 4pm on Saturday. Admission is free.   Dunfermline Press