Elzbieta Zdunek

Lives and works in Helsinki, Finland

Artist statement

I speak two artistic languages; each expresses my different wants and needs. Photography is about capturing the moment. I love portraying the moment of change, when suddenly nothing is as it was before. Therefore, my photography language is usually shadow and reflection. Often, it is not about the object as such but about how it is perceived. I am looking for the hidden surreal. While photography allows me to catch the surrealism that already exists if we only look, collages are a tool to tell my own story. And even more than once, I may reuse repeating elements many times and always come with a new outcome, solution or turn of events. I like saying that collages are a bit like life; it is not always up to us what happens, what kind of people or events we encounter, but we do have relative liberty in what role do we allow them to play. Collages are a visual game of “what if”. Mannequins, being so eerily alive and dead at the same time, allow to address dark, uncomfortable, and sad topics, like fear, isolation, mental health, impossible standards. I am fascinated with the topic of nature versus nurture and how we and our environment influence and impact each other. I find incredible all the layers we have inside and how interconnected they are. I look at repeating patterns in the history of humanity, how often what we are free to choose has been chosen for us beforehand. I want to portray the moment of change, when we don’t know yet has the choice been good or bad, is it a...

Artwork