JROST – Justyna Rostankowska Dembczynska

I am a painter and photographer who contemplate on the pace of modern life and slow down the rush to ever-increasing consumerism. I like to observe life around me and reflect on the effect of this on our lives.

Painting and photography are media that help me to reflect on our surroundings to capture and preserve moments of people’s everyday lives, which we all too often miss. We listen to news from all corners of the world while missing things that are very close. I try to identify and capture fleeting moments of beauty and value that may be missed in our endless rush. My art reflects a desire to capture the moments worth preserving in the face of the ever increasing pace of consumerism. In a more personal sense, I am preserving a sense of things that are close to me, the people around me and life in Cambridge. Rather than expressing an abstract ideas, I try to notice the true character of people and places.

My creations address people who are tired of the endless rush and want to take a break and appreciate the beauty of everyday life. If you want to stop time and preserve memories and fully appreciate what life has to offer, then this is a good place to start.

My paintings and photographs will help you rediscover places which you may pass by everyday with no time to spare to reflect on them.

I studied fine arts for 11 years, developing my techniques and increasing my knowledge and understanding of art. I completed art photography and painting courses at university in Poland, receiving a Master of Fine Arts degree, studying under the leading Polish artists Prof Alexandra Siminska and Dr Joanna Stasiak. I also completed a course on stained glass techniques.

My naturally creative disposition always led me to seek different modes of artistic expression. In my studies, I particularly enjoyed venturing into sculpture, drawing, graphic design, lithography and anything else that might enhance my creative potential. I embraced every new artistic technique with passion, appreciating the values of the possibilities and ideas offered by each new medium.

Whatever the medium, it is only a basis for expressing my true passion for art.

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Art and Motherhood – A Personal Reflection

While completing my master’s thesis on the painter Marek Glowczyk, I read many biographies of different artists and was surprised how many of them had a break of around ten years in their creative output when they started to have a family. At the time, I could not understand why this should be so. As the years passed and my own life experiences grew, however, I began to understand how totally absorbing having children can be – for male as well as female artists. Photography was the one aspect of my artistic life that always continued while my own family was growing.