Leprosy | performance by Kinga Tecmer and Natalia Pastusiak

Meet Janina Bartkiewiczówna. A builder. A courageous woman: a scout, commander of the Toruń branch of the Polish Scouting and Guiding Association (ZHP), educator of many generations of young Torun women and Torun residents. Toward the end of her life, she went to Africa to help those most in need there. She became involved in caring for people suffering from leprosy in Uganda. It was this last stage of Janina Bartkiewiczówna’s life that inspired two artists: Kinga Tecmer and Natalia Pastusiak, students of the Faculty of Fine Arts at the University of Krakow, to create the performance “Leprosy,” which will be performed during the Festival of Forgotten Cultures on Sunday, November 24 at 6:30 pm.

In their performance, the authors appeal to the audience’s empathy, evoking elements associated with pain and suffering. On the other hand, they direct attention to the courage and uncompromising nature of their heroine. The action of the artists takes place in parallel with Michal Zaręba’s radio interview about Janina Bartkiewicz, which is played in the background.

The creators:

Kinga Tecmer and Natalia Pastusiak – students of the Faculty of Fine Arts, winners of the WOAK Director Luke Wudarski Award at the 11th International Student Drawing Exhibition RYSOWAĆ NOW.

The event is held as part of the “Festival of Forgotten Cultures: Female Builders. Herstories of brave women” subsidized by funds from the Local Government of the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship.

The event is part of the celebration of the Year of Brave Women.