HOAX is a project about self-deception and denial in Poland, where, despite belonging to the European Union, EU standards are considered radical and the idea of ​​separating religion from the state produces discomfort and turmoil. The Polish Catholic Church enjoys privileges, while women’s freedoms are curtailed, racial minorities do not have full rights and homosexuality is viewed by many as a disease. In energy-related terms, coal remains the main energy source while investment in renewable energy and green transformation is practically non-existent.

Agnieszka Sejud uses digital photography to point to the profound impact that media manipulation has on Polish society. Using symbolic elements of the country’s culture such as traditional costumes, religious figures and the colours of the national flag, she builds an ironic representation through collages that point to the propaganda that is circulated on the Internet. The series includes images of evident manipulation, as well as others that pose a stimulating game of visual analysis for the viewer where the limits between reality and hoax are blurred.

Agniszka Sejud was born in 1991 in Wrocław, Poland, where she lives and works. She is a photographer, visual artist, activist, member of KWAS collective. She is currently studying a Bachellor in Arts of Photography at Silesian University in Opava, Czech Republic. She is living and working in Poland. Her practice works with photography, collage and installation, often experimenting with the medium. In her artistic practice, she mainly explores topics of identity, personal freedom and oppressions of systems. Her work has ben exhibited in TIFF Open, BWA Awangarda Wrocław, Contemporary Museum Wrocław, or Athens Photo Festival for instance, and published in Vogue Italia and Paper Journal, among others.

Agnieszka Sejud (Poland, 1991)
HOAX

2020 Edition
Open Call winner
Outdoor installation
Venue: Market façade
Collaborators: Picter, Traders of the Algorta Market