Multidisciplinary artists Lukasz Polowczyk and Margo Sanda have come together to release their new Chroma Key project. An exploration and celebration of minimalism, Chroma Key is a rich collection of 21 micro-poems written by Berlin-based Polowczyk accompanied by the art work of Italian-born Sanda which is based on the author’s own imagery and photos, all presented in a deck of cards format. To coincide, the project will also feature one edition of seven prints of the imagery on the back of the cards. There will also be a limited edition cassette release which features a collaging of poetry performed by Lukasz Polowczyk backed by a composition played by German musician and producer Jan Wagner, whose collaboration with Polowczyk for their Aint About Me release rose to critical acclaim.
Whilst a minimalist approach to creating the content was the targeted aim, Lukasz Polowczyk’s writings are dense observations of love, loss, joy, anger, self reflection, appreciation and sociological movings. Poetic lines match a particular rhythmic pattern perfectly complimenting Margo Sanda’s textured, flowing art. Like Polowczyk’s previous work, Chroma Key requires multiple reads to fully grasp its depth as each poem is left open for multiple interpretations, creating a juxtaposition between that which is indeed minimalist and maximal at its very core. Already proving to be a master of layering, Polowczyk operates a like fine-toothed designer combined with a free jazz experimentalist whose alchemy is definitely intentional, hence the everything from the poetry, complimenting imagery, down to the book’s packaging, which is stems from a shared vision with Margo Sanda. Sanda’s own background as a music composer as well as multi-media artist makes for the full understanding of not only the emotional power that a visualscape has but also how imagery and text can be just as melodic as anything audible.
Touching on the project, Lukasz Polowczyk stated:
“I wanted to explore the beauty and the power of the “simple gesture.” I wanted to take the idea of less is more and implement it at every level: from the text, through the photos, all the way down to product design. I love minimalism and space. I love abstraction. I love the formal reductionism and the use of negative space in Zen calligraphy as well as the resourcefulness of Zen koans. Chroma Key is my personal take on these ideas and modalities.
The fact that the book comes wrapped like a tiny gift is not only a statement, but a protocol. The paper is very delicate, so it calls for careful handling. Finally, since this is not a traditional book, but something closer to a deck of cards – the Tarot, maybe? – this implies the potential for active engagement with the object. All of this is a function of product design; hence, I don’t see these poems as being something separate from it.”
https://chromakeypoems.bandcamp.com/releases
https://www.margosanda.com/
https://aintaboutme.bandcamp.com/