Mariola Wiazowska is a contemporary art student based in Galway whose work explores the shifting relationship between environment, material, and perception.

Focusing on wetland ecology, her work explores the interactions between natural systems and synthetic materials, particularly how plastic can mimic and integrate into organic environments. Her methodology combines observation, scanning, and image-based processes, creating works that combine documentation and abstraction.

Her practice draws inspiration from an interest in ambiguity, where visual signals become uncertain and open to interpretation. In this way, she explores how environmental tensions can be felt not only through visible impact but also through subtle shifts in perception.

Her work contributes to ongoing discussions about ecology, materiality, and the shifting boundaries between natural and artificial environments.

Since childhood, I have felt a strong connection to the land, shaping my sense of belonging and awareness of the environment in which I live. This connection transcends physical presence, carrying cultural, historical, and emotional significance and reminding us of our responsibility to the natural world.

My early work explored the visual language of place and time through layered photography and post-production. By combining images, I sought to create a sense of depth and build memory, particularly in peatland landscapes, where conservation and transformation coexist.

A shift in my practice occurred with the introduction of textile as a material. This added a tangible dimension, allowing me to connect the physical and metaphorical layers of the landscape. By connecting the bottom and the peat bog, I began to blur the lines between the domestic and the natural, creating hybrid environments shaped by memory and transformation.

Recently, my work has shifted towards abstraction as a way to address environmental issues. Through distortion and fragmentation, I explore the tension between organic and synthetic elements, using visual language to suggest pollution and ecological imbalance.

This led me to experiment with scanography, placing found materials such as plastics and textiles directly onto a flatbed scanner. This process creates detailed compositions that emphasize texture, surface, and material presence.

My practice focuses on the impact of human consumption on wetland ecosystems, particularly the overlooked problem of textile and plastic pollution. Using reclaimed materials, I reflect the structures of peat bogs while simultaneously exposing the presence of these materials.

Through this work, I encourage viewers to consider their relationship with consumption and to reflect on the hidden impacts of everyday materials on fragile environments.

 

MARIOLA WIAZOWSKA
Barna, Co. Galway, Ireland
+353 85 838 3729
mariola.wiazowska@gmail.com

 

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EDUCATION

2021 – Present
MA in Contemporary Art Practice
Atlantic Technological University, Galway

2012 – 2015
Art & Design, Level 6 Certificate
Galway Technical Institute

 

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EXHIBITIONS

2024
126 Artist-Run Gallery, Galway

2016
Claddagh Hall, Galway

2013
Claddagh Hall, Galway

 

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ARTISTIC PRACTICE

Mariola Wiazowska is a Galway-based artist working primarily with photography and mixed media. Her practice explores environmental perception, with a focus on wetland ecologies and the relationship between natural systems and synthetic materials.

Through processes such as scanography and material experimentation, she investigates how textures, light and form can shift between abstraction and representation. Her work often examines the integration of human-made materials within natural environments, creating subtle tensions between what is organic and artificial.

Her approach is grounded in observation, experimentation and an interest in how visual language can evoke atmosphere, memory and environmental awareness.

 

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SKILLS

• Adobe Photoshop
• Adobe Premiere Pro
• Photography and image-based practice
• Video editing
• Scanography and alternative processes
• Mixed media

 

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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Based in Galway, Ireland
Available for exhibitions and collaborative projects