Despite the central role Mary Magdalene had played in the life of Jesus and the formation of early Christianity, she is not given a seat at the table of „The Last Supper” by Leonardo da Vinci. Her appearance in front of the scenery could be interpreted as reflecting our growing consciousness of how the most important female figure of Christianity has been deformed and concealed by the church itself. Maria Magdalena becomes the metaphor for the exclusion of the feminine in many of our cultural traditions, a form of exile that is painfully experienced by women up to this day.

Anna Tyszecka

The third symbolic scene: the dancing figure of Mary Magdalene, at the backdrop of Leonardo da Vinci’s Renaissance study of perspective is another metaphor created by the artist: the creative overthrow of historic stereotypes and divisions. It implies the extraordinary contemporary opportunity for creating a new state of art-equilibrium in favour of a more holistic and sustainable human perspective.

Anna Tyszecka

Introduction to the GOLDEN SECTION light paintings by Anna Tyszecka

“Maria Magdalena Kossak’s contribution to the debate about the role of women in contemporary society is a visual one. By embodying her infamous patron, the biblical Mary Magdalene, the artist has created three moving collages, the prototypes for which are rooted in Renaissance and Christian iconographic traditions. The artist’s attempt to depict female trauma is based upon her visual formulations concerning the historical rejection of feminine culture. By merging analogue and digital media – in this case the iconic paintings of Leonardo da Vinci with video footage of her own performances – Kossak gives expression to a field of subtleties that compel a closer visual analysis of femininity in contemporary culture...”