Daniel Rycharski's "Scarecrows" tell the story of anti-gay prejudice in conservative Poland





Crosses hung from the ceiling wrapped in barbed wire and draped with clothes belonging to LGBT people make up the centrepiece of artist Daniel Rycharski's exhibition at Warsaw's Museum of Modern Art.

Poland's ruling party picks LGBT rights as election battlefront Poland's ruling... czytaj dalej » The work, titled 'Scarecrows', and other exhibits mix Catholic iconography and images from pop culture and rural society to tackle fears and prejudices in Polish society.

Rycharski, who grew up in a small village in Poland's Masovian region, said he wants to use his exhibition to break down prejudice and show that becoming acquainted with things people fear or do not understand makes them less scary.

Rycharski said he found it difficult to have consultants, often Catholic clergy, stick with him throughout the process of creating his exhibition, as one by one they broke off contact with him as his works began to materialise.

One of the more poignant works in the exhibition is 'Crucifix': a carved wooden cross made from the branches of a tree from which a gay teenage couple hanged themselves after having been the targets of homophobic bullying.

Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski signs LGBT+ declaration In Warsaw the... czytaj dalej » The message of the work is that homophobia kills, Rycharski said.

Curator Szymon Maliborski said the exhibition discussed Polish society from an unusual perspective and explored some of the key conflicts Polish society currently faces.

Poland ranks second-last out of 28 EU countries when it comes to equality and non-discrimination, according to Rainbow Europe, an organisation linked to the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association.

Since their election in 2015, Poland's ruling Law and Justice party (PiS) have sought to promote traditional Christian values in public life.

Rycharski's exhibition runs until April 22.