Conversation: Artist Natalia Romik and Curator Kuba Szreder

The conversation features artist Natalia Romik, curator Kuba Szreder, and Koffler Arts’ General Director Matthew Jocelyn discussing the exhibition Plague Crystals. This series of crystal towers is created from repurposed vessels containing objects that symbolize a broad range of contemporary plagues. Romik’s conception of “plague” extends beyond infectious disease to include political, economic, religious, social, and environmental issues. While the artist selected many of the symbolic objects herself, she solicited nominations for others from academics and community members. The discussion explores the artistic process, the symbolic objects, and how society grapples with dire straits.

Dr. Natalia Romik is a public historian, architect, and artist. Her work focuses on Jewish memory and Holocaust commemoration in Eastern Europe, particularly Poland and Ukraine. She has collaborated as a curator and exhibition designer at POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews. She is a winner of the 2022 Dan David Prize, the largest prize in the field of history in the world.

Kuba Szreder PhD is a researcher, curator, and lecturer at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. He is the editor and author of several catalogues, books, readers, book chapters, articles, and manifestos that scrutinize the social, economic, and theoretical aspects of the expanded field of art. In 2025, together with Kacper Greń and the Institute of Network Cultures in Amsterdam, he published the visual essay Duckrabbits Unveiled: A Sneak Peek at Postartistic Theory and Practice.