Swimming Pool in Estremadura 

Editor: This is Iwo Zaniewski’s “Swimming Pool in Estremadura,” rendered in pencil and pastel. There’s something so striking about the contrast between the geometric pool and the seemingly untouched landscape around it. What story do you think this contrast tells? Curator: Well, looking at it historically, the geometric form set within a landscape like Estremadura brings to mind a tension inherent in Modernist projects. There’s a social dimension here - an assertion of control, perhaps, over nature through design and architecture, making the landscape almost a stage for human activity. The pale blue seems oddly placid, doesn't it? Almost as though it were mocking its surroundings? Editor: I see what you mean about control. Do you think the medium used has any relevance? Curator: Definitely. The use of pencil and pastel lends it a delicacy, almost a tentative approach to imposing order. It is not harsh concrete; it’s softened with color and medium. It suggests a sensitivity – or perhaps even an ambivalence – toward the impact of introducing constructed forms to a wilder place. The way the colors seem somewhat muted – what do you make of that? Editor: The muted colors make me think the piece is not celebratory; they are more contemplative and hesitant. Curator: Precisely! Zaniewski's piece serves as an interesting reflection on the ways in which modern society interacts with, shapes, and perceives the natural world, wouldn’t you say? Editor: Absolutely. I never would have considered those aspects. Thank you for illuminating how cultural narratives can be embedded in seemingly simple landscapes.