Kowalski

born 1980 in Lienz, Austria

lives and works in Salzburg, Austria

The artist and former national soccer team player Wolfgang Mair was born in Lienz in
East Tyrol and publishes his works under the pseudonym Kowalski.
In Kowalski’s paintings, paper surfaces or canvases are places where contradictions, social criticism and the security thinking of our socio-cultural structure are deliberately placed before our eyes. The works depict events and familiar moments from the media and pop culture, which have a humorous effect through mask-like, almost satirical exaggeration and at the same time are thought-provoking. Formal, purely visual elements are linked mentally or emotionally. Like a novel, a narrative. As in a narrative, however, a picture also creates boundaries, limits what we can add.
The self-taught artist always works on the backs of his works – with sketches, collages, mind games or just plain facts about his main work. In this way, he creates another level for the viewer and gives an even deeper insight into his world of thought.