Junctures: Exhibition and Performance
Artist: Małgorzata Drohomirecka
Performance by: Magdalena Kij
Dates: April 3, 2025 – April 30, 2025
Venue: Rogue Artists’ Studios CIC 2-6 Barras Street, Openshaw, M11 1PU, Manchester Private View: April 3, 2025, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Live Performance: April 3, 2025, 7:00 PM.
Opening Hours: Weekends, 12:00 AM – 6:00 PM, or by appointment. To schedule a visit, contact maggiestick.art@gmail.com
Rogue Artists’ Studios presents Junctures. A solo exhibition by visual artist Małgorzata Drohomirecka, running from April 3 to April 30, 2025. The opening night will feature a live performance directed by Magdalena Kij. Both artists are rooted in Polish culture and are part of a generation that experienced the transition from communism to neoliberal democracy. They explore critical societal issues, including power structures, the intersection of state and church authority, and women’s roles in this transformation, viewed from Central and Eastern European feminist perspectives. The series of 14 paintings intertwines the narrative of the Stations of the Cross with the heroine’s journey confronting the patriarchal rules of church and state, using symbols from historical, religious, and popular culture. Liberation in Progress by Magdalena Kij is a performance responding to the exhibition’s themes. Incorporating movement, projection, sound, lighting, handcrafted costumes, and found objects, the piece explores oppression, objectification, guilt, and rebellion—ultimately expressing hope for dismantling patriarchal structures. With contributions from Evita Ziemele, Megan Brierley, and Matylda Augustynek, the performance weaves elements of protest and absurdity, challenging traditional narratives and inviting the audience into an immersive experience of transformation and resistance. A video presentation will accompany the exhibition, featuring artists in conversation with Urszula Ulla Chowaniec, an expert in cultural studies. Together, they explore the exhibition’s critical themes, offering deeper insight into its narratives and context.
Małgorzata Drohomirecka is a Polish-born, London-based visual artist with a background in painting from the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdańsk. Her work intertwines painting, screen-printing and 16 mm camera-less film. Through her recent paintings she addresses issues of marginalization, hierarchy, and power structures. She also questions prevailing narratives around feminism and cultural identity. Małgorzata has taken part in solo and group exhibitions both in the UK and abroad. Among her solo exhibitions are “Wa(y)st(o)ed Freedom” at Centrala, Birmingham (2021), and “Polonia_2020,” an online project as part of the Culture on the Net grant programme run by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland (2020).
Magdalena Kij (known by the pseudonym Maggie Stick) is a Polish artist based in Manchester, UK, with a studio at Rogue. Her work explores identity and transformation. She uses performance, drawing, installation, printmaking, and music to engage audiences and provoke thought. Magdalena has exhibited and performed across the United Kingdom, Poland and Thailand. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Fine Art from the University of Salford (where she graduated with First-Class Honors) and is currently studying for a master’s degree in socially engaged art practice at the same institution. Magdalena is also committed to community engagement – working with marginalized groups and raising awareness of hate crimes.