Justyna Stoszek

Interdisciplinary artist. For nearly twenty years, she has been engaged in artistic and social activities in public and multimedia spaces. She leads workshops, initiates, and supports social actions. In her work, she focuses on broadly understood ecological education, the relationship between humans and nature, and the protection of the natural environment. Painting is the most important aspect of her artistic practice. She also works in book illustration and graphic design. She began her art education at the Secondary School of Fine Arts in Rzeszów (specializing in woodcarving, with a diploma in sculpture). In 1999, she graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków with a degree in painting. In 2014, she began studying lithography at the Experimental Pablo Picasso Lithography Studio in Warsaw. From 2005 to 2012, she ran a yoga school in Kraków, where she developed her interests in art therapy, creating Przepływ – her original method of working with body and emotions, as well as a series of workshops for women. She is the author of the book “The Eternal Forest. Beyond the Pursuit of Big Cities” and a pioneer of plant installations in glass. Since 2007, she has been developing the FOREST FOREVER project – miniature forests enclosed in glass. Since 2017, she has been realizing the Biosferaosobista exhibition cycle, aimed at deepening knowledge and awareness of phenomena related to the functioning of the natural environment, reflecting on the relationship between humans and nature, and on the effects of anthropopression – the impact of human activity on nature. The first stage of the project was an exhibition of forests in glass in their natural surroundings. For the exhibition, the artist created her own organic glass, in which plant biospheres grow. Openings took place in natural settings, including the Białowieża Forest, Beskid forests, and Masuria. Subsequent editions were presented in urban spaces – in industrial environments (Detal Fest in Łódź), theaters (premiere of “Macbeth” directed by Agata Duda-Gracz at the Capitol Theater in Wrocław), and galleries (including Galeria Browaru Poznańskiego and Stara Słodownia). In 2020, her paintings and lithographs were showcased at the international exhibition “Botanical Explorations. Botanical Art in the 21st Century” at the Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology in Kraków. One of her important projects was the nationwide open-air exhibition “Earth Hour,” organized in collaboration with AMS. Her works were displayed on large-format billboards (also in animated versions), citylights, and advertising poles in many Polish cities. She is a scholarship recipient of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage under the “Culture Online” program.

ARTISTIC EXHIBITIONS AND PROJECTS

2024 – XXI Warsaw Art Fair.
2019–2023 – Nationwide exhibition “Forest Forever”
Paintings displayed on large-format billboards, lightboxes, and advertising poles – AMS Poster Gallery

2021 – Artistic Book – A film project allowing the audience to participate in the creation of an artist’s book. The theme of the book and film is the creative process, the human-nature relationship, myths, and the symbolism of the plant and animal world. “I understand the artist’s book here as a book over whose final form the artist retains full control through all stages of its creation. As a book that is itself a work of art. It is not only a collection of the artist’s works but also has its own narrative.”
Project implemented as part of the scholarship program of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage.

2020–2021 – Artistic project “Hope”
A response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Paintings displayed on large-format media across Poland (in collaboration with AMS).

2020 – International exhibition “Botanical Explorations. Botanical Art in the 21st Century”
Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology, Kraków
Curators: Anna Król, Sylvia Peter.
The first exhibition in Europe presenting the phenomenon of contemporary botanical art, featuring works by Western and Japanese artists, contextualized with old masters of botanical illustration such as Maria Sibylla Merian, Georg Hoefnagel, and ukiyo-e masterpieces by Utamaro and Hiroshige. The extensive exhibition was an innovative endeavor in Europe, connecting “botanical artists” from the West and Japan, showcasing historical masters alongside contemporary works. The Manggha Museum implemented the project differently from previous exhibitions of this kind, focusing on the interplay and fusion of Eastern and Western cultures, Asia and Europe.
The exhibition aligns with the global movement stemming from concerns about preserving biodiversity worldwide. Over 30 artists from various European countries and beyond participated. Organized in collaboration with the Nuremberg House.

2020 – Set design and visual framing for Adam Mickiewicz’s “LILIES”
Concert for voices, dagger, shovel, sampler, and percussion
Theatre Institute in Warsaw

2019 – Exhibition “HOMO NATURALIS” – Arttrakt Gallery, Wrocław.

2019 – Nationwide urban exhibition “Earth Hour”
Painting “Heart/Tree” and other works on large-format backlights, citylights, and advertising poles – AMS Poster Gallery Competition

2019 – Set design and visual framing for the play “Dream”
A poetic play dedicated to the works of Bolesław Leśmian.

2018 – Design and creation of statuettes – living sculptures
Awards for the Innovation 2018 competition

2018 – Exhibition “Personal Biosphere”, Stańska Art Gallery, Warsaw

2017 – “Personal Biosphere” exhibition cycle:
Galeria Poznańskiego Browaru, Stara Słodownia (October)
Premiere of “Macbeth” directed by Agata Duda-Gracz, Capitol Theater, Wrocław (October)
Łódź Detal Fest (September)
Exhibitions in Białowieża Forest, Beskid forests, and Masurian forests (spring/summer)

2015 – “Forest Forever” exhibition, Warsaw Praga Culture Promotion Center

2015 – Exhibition of Contemporary Polish Art “Japanese Inspirations”, Embassy of Japan in Warsaw

PUBLICATIONS

2018 – “The Eternal Forest. Beyond the Pursuit of Big Cities”
Pascal Publishing
A poetic reportage about people for whom the Białowieża Forest, Masurian forest, and Beskid forest are not just places of residence but their entire lives