Val Ziółko ‘The Bloom of Transqueer’

‘The world is relentlessly harsh towards all who dare to oppose it. It has established its own laws, and woe betide those who dare to live their own individual life, even if its expressions are wholly different from all that entrenched customs sanctify and lawmakers commend’.

Oscar Wilde

Exhibition opening: 17 October 2025 (Friday), 7 pm
Galeria Labirynt, ul. ks. J. Popiełuszki 5, Lublin
On view until: 16 November 2025 (Tuesday–Sunday, noon–7 pm)

Through portrait photography, the exhibition ‘The Bloom of Transqueer’ gives a voice to Lublin residents who face discrimination and exclusion daily. In his work, Val Ziółko draws on the aesthetics of classical painting to create a series of contemporary portraits. They reveal dignity and bring out the depth and beauty so often denied to certain groups in public spaces.

The works on display are a reflection of the condition of the individual in the face of social prejudice. Drawing on the style of the great masters, the artist lends his photographs elegance and timelessness, while at the same time challenging harmful narratives. Each piece is an intimate story – an attempt to capture character and personal experience, allowing viewers to see the subjects with empathy and understanding.

The exhibition creates a space in which each portrait becomes a manifesto of flourishing. It offers the opportunity to step out of the shadows of social stereotypes and to shape one’s image on one’s own.

Carried out as part of the scholarship programme of the Mayor of Lublin.

Val Ziółko – a graduate in interior design from the Cyprian Kamil Norwid State Secondary School of Fine Arts in Lublin and in media production from Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin. He is currently studying art history at the John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin. In his practice, he works primarily with photography. The themes of his work draw on oneiric motifs and the old masters, with whom the artist seeks to engage in a contemporary dialogue. He is an LGBTQ+ rights activist, focusing on the needs of transgender people. He was named a ‘Trailblazer of a Young Generation’ as part of Vogue’s Global Youth Project. He received a special award in the 12th International Photography Contest ‘Master’s Works as an Inspiration for Contemporary Photography’.