The International Satyrykon 2024 exhibition can still be admired at the Legnica Copper Museum until 29 September, but our exhibition is about to embark on a further journey – this time going all the way to Belgium! Thanks to the cooperation with Ronald Vanoystaeyen, one of the Satiricon jurors, we are delighted to present the latest, 47th edition of the competition in the foyer of the Vooruit Theatre in the Belgian town of Boechout (Sint-Bavoplein 17). It consists of 172 works that the international jury has selected for the post-competition exhibition.
The exhibition will open with an opening with the organisers from Legnica on Friday, 4 October, at 7 p.m. The exhibition will run until Sunday, 27 October and will be available during events taking place at Theater Vooruit. In addition, the exhibition will be specially open during the annual fair, taking place on Tuesday, 8 October (10:00-17:00) and Sunday, 27 October 2024 (13:00-17:00). Entry to all events is free.
Thousands of works by artists from all over the world are submitted to the competition every year – on the occasion of the 47th edition of Satyrykon, the organisers received 2,783 proposals from 836 authors. This year, the theme was DUMMY. Traditionally, participants could also submit their works to the second, more general JOKE AND SATIRE section. Gold, silver and bronze medals are awarded in both categories, as well as two honorary mentions. The most important prize – the Satyrykon Grand Prix – is selected from entries in both categories; this year it was won by Paweł Kuczyński for his work ‘The Wall’. The international jury in 2024 included the aforementioned Ronald Vanoystaeyen from the Belgian IHA, who had a real influence on the selection of the winners and the works going to the post-competition exhibition.
The jurors for this year’s edition were also: Agim Sulaj (Italy) – chairman, Justyna Jędrysek (Poland), Elżbieta Laskowska (Poland), Grzegorz Myćka (Poland), Elżbieta Pietraszko (Poland) and Jugoslav Vlahović (Serbia). And how did the committee members comment on their choices? Justyna Jędrysek, speaking about Paweł Kuczyński’s winning work, first and foremost drew attention to its objective overtones, while wishing this graphic to… quickly become obsolete: Above all, this work does not take sides. It is a commentary on today’s situation and reality. It favours no one and may it be out of date in a year’s time. Elżbieta Laskowska also noted the potential reach of the winning graphic: ‘The events in Gaza have been generating loud discussions for many years, and I think this work will resonate – including with international audiences. It is a strong political satire.
Agim Sulaj noted, however, that the artists were keen to speak on more than just painful, almost journalistic, topics: We saw a lot of very good works and it was difficult to choose between the best ones. It is true that the Grand Prix is not at all laughable. Because also the situation we are in at the moment in the world is not funny at all. But we also have a lot of funny works among the award winners. Jugoslav Vlahović and Ronald Vanoystaeyen debated the similarities and differences between the works of Pavel Kuczynski and Victor Kudin. The Belgian juror wondered whether the two graphics presented two sides of the same global coin, while Vlahović had a somewhat more developed opinion on the subject: ‘It’s a broad issue showing that the global reality nowadays is in strong interaction with the local one and they cannot be separated so easily. The world has changed a lot and is interconnected in the field of culture and media. We, as cartoonists, like to exaggerate problems and show them as even bigger ones in order to provoke. It can look sad or serious, which is not typical for humour and satire – there is no joke here, just a serious illustration of a political situation. It’s a message given directly, very good drawing and strong artwork, so that’s how our final decision was,’ admitted the respected Serbian cartoonist.
Stay tuned for more information on the Satyricon expedition, which we will keep you updated on!