Biography
Santa Fe artist Polina Smutko (b. 1948 Sewickley, PA) drawing on their own experience deconstructs the marginalization of trans and non-binary people through assemblage sculptures. After studying at Pennsylvania State University (1966-1970), the San Francisco Art Institute (1971-1972), and Foothill College (1974-1975), Smutko's bold constructions using found objects like broken asphalt and rusted nails are housed in steel boxes and specimen jars, creating a melancholic reflection on resilience in the face of oppression. Taking cues from Buyes, Wojnarowicz, Gonzles Torres, and others, Smutko's work, exhibited at venues like Cloud Cliff Art Space (1993) Fuller Lodge Art Center, 1993, Fine Arts Gallery NM State Fairgrounds, 1993 and the Santa Fe Community College (1992), and in 1985 at the Colorado Springs Biennial highlights the humanity and defiance of marginalized communities everywhere.
Statement
My art practice is deeply personal, drawing on my experiences as a trans/nonbinary person to explore the trauma of dehumanization and marginalization. I use assemblage and installation to confront the societal frameworks used to pathologize and objectify trans and non-binary people.
The objects and materials I use are selected for their poetic/metaphoric and tactile relationship to these experiences and trauma.
My work is influenced by the artist and social visionary Joseph Beuy’s, as well as the passion of David Wojnarowicz, and Cris Burden, the vision of Bruce Nauman, Félix González-Torres, and Nicholas Galanin, the poetry of Jean Genet, Patti Smith, Lou Reed, and others.
Identity lies at the very heart of our self-awareness and consciousness, our existence. I believe in a kind of transgender diaspora, the psycho-political dynamic that persistently seeks to demolish the rightfulness of our identities and evict us from the essence that is our selves.
I aim to challenge viewers to confront their own complicity in systems of oppression and question their own biases.
Ultimately, I hope my work fosters a greater understanding of the trans experience and cultivates a more just and equitable society where all trans and non-binary individuals are accepted, respected, and celebrated.