Agnieszka Kraus
Agnieszka Kraus (known as Gajek), is a Polish visual artist, painter and printmaker currently based in Berlin, where she has lived and worked since 2017. She holds a Master of Fine Arts degree in Painting and Serigraphy from the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdańsk, Poland, completed in 2008. Her studies also included an exchange program at Marmara University in Istanbul, where she deepened her exploration of painting. Between 2010 and 2015, she resided in Brussels, Belgium, an experience that significantly shaped her artistic outlook.
Gajek’s artistic vision centers on the poignant tension between nature and urbanity, exploring the fracture between our natural origins and the artificiality of modern city life. Her work conveys themes of alienation and solitude, using animals as powerful metaphors for vulnerability and displacement within an increasingly concrete-dominated world. Employing immersive techniques such as CMYK layers in lightboxes and anaglyph 3D effects in paintings, she creates multi-sensory experiences that draw viewers into reflective narratives. Her use of error codes as titles deepens the conceptual layers, symbolizing systemic overload, ecological crisis, and the human disconnect from the natural environment. Through her innovative and emotive artistry, Kraus urges a reexamination of humanity’s relationship with the fragile ecosystems we inhabit.
Kraus’s work has been widely recognized, earning her the Minister of Culture and National Heritage Award for Best Diploma in Painting in 2008. She was also nominated for prestigious distinctions such as Creators of Culture in Gdańsk and Storm of the Year in 2009. Representing Poland on the international stage, she participated in the XIII Biennale of Young Artists from Europe and the Mediterranean in Bari, Italy, in 2008, and the XIV edition in Skopje, North Macedonia, in 2009. Her works have been exhibited at prominent venues such as the Canvascollectie | Collection RTBF at the Centre for Fine Arts BOZAR in Brussels, Belgium, in 2011, as well as the "9e Biennale Internationale de Gravure" at the Museum of Fine Arts in Liège, Belgium. Her work continues to be exhibited internationally, supported by numerous grants and cultural scholarships.
