2nd Prize in the competition for permanent art installation in the Sybir Memorial Museum

The permament art installation “Frozen People” has been designed and created as part of the competition for the Sybir Memorial Museum in Białystok. The project has been awarded 2nd Prize by the Jury. The installation presents a group of life-sized figures casted in artistic glass, huddled in the cold, supposingly walking in uncharted space, in the snowy wasteland, far from their own homes. They go focused, close to each other, to make it easier to observe each other, to feel safer and encourage, warm with mutual presence and community.

We purposely wanted to evoke emotions in visitors that would cause reflection and their own interpretations of this sculptural installation. Entering the room, the viewer would first see the composition from behind, then with curiosity he would want to see the faces of the characters and … with horror he would find only emptiness. He wouldn’t be able to see the body or face. The material draped in a layer of outer cover suggests these are people, however, and the warm light illuminating the glass forms reminds that there is still hope in them – proof of humanity.

The 1: 5 scale model largely reflects the artistic character that we imagined to achieve in the natural size of the composition. The characters, which are the main part of the installation, are made of original artistic glass with a variable external texture, referring to winter structures, snow slings and ice glistening.

Design: arch. Tomasz Urbanowicz & arch. Konrad Urbanowicz.