Free entry
Henry Kondracki: Joie de vivre is an exhibition about memory.
Born and brought up in Edinburgh as a first-generation Scot to Polish parents, Henry Kondracki grew up under the influence of the American movies and cartoons that he would see in the cinemas around the city each week. Leaving school at 15, he taught himself to draw and had his first exhibition at the Citizens Theatre, Glasgow, when he was 17. In 1981 he went to London to study at the Byam Shaw School of Art before being accepted to the Slade School of Art. At the Slade his illustrious rollcall of tutors included Paula Rego and Bruce Mclean. Influenced by the resurgence of figurative painting in London at the time, Kondracki excelled at the Slade, winning a host of awards and exhibiting in the city for 10 years before returning to Edinburgh in the late 80s.
Kondracki’s paintings are synonymous with the city of Edinburgh. His practice combines observed experience – the Wellington Statue on an autumn day, walking down the Mound in the rain – with memories of his childhood in the city. Speaking about his work, Kondracki has described memory as ‘the lifeblood of creativity,’ and Joie de vivre shows this to be at the heart of his work. The exhibition brings together a host of fleeting moments - Casablanca at the Cameo, the Beatles at the Palladium, a donkey ride at the beach. It celebrates the joy of remembering and the role of the painter in distilling, recasting and representing our world.