On the 29th of September 2023, Karolina received the heartbreaking news, that she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Having over 15 years experience as a community artist, Karolina decided to visually document her life changing experiences through the therapeutic media of art. Karolina states, ‘I find it easier to process my own emotions when embarked on other stories. On top of that, being in an active creative state also heals my emotional, spiritual and physical body’. Through painting her experiences, this enabled Karolina to be able to fully process the journey that she was going through in her cancer diagnosis.
This series of artwork will be featured an her upcoming exhibition at Millennium Court. Karolina has split this exhibition into two sets. The first five paintings portray her journey from the initial diagnosis through the impact that treatment had on her everyday life. The second set of five represents the healing process — an exploration of recovery, hope, and the rediscovery of self-love. Each piece of artwork features a heart-shaped frame and the hashtag #loveyourselffirst, a symbol that carries special meaning for the artist.
Karolina says ‘I was inspired by heart shapes before my diagnosis, I see a lot of heart shapes in different objects. In the past I associated them with finding romantic love, but over time I’ve noticed that I see them no matter what the relationship status. This is when I realised it serves as a reminder, to love myself first.’
Karolina hopes that through her artwork she can be inspiration to others to love themselves, as she has learned to through her journey of self discovery. Through the ‘healing’ series, Karolina aims to inspire others with the self-love part of her recovery. Through her exhibition she has embarked on creating 1000 mini heart paintings to hand out randomly for people to find. Through these hearts Karolina hopes to encourage others to embrace the good in every situation and live life to the fullest.
This exhibition will be opening on Saturday 15th November at 2pm. Karolina’s exhibition does not just outline her journey; it’s a celebration of resilience, creativity, and community. She is grateful for the support that she has received through out her journey from her family and friends and the work of the Pretty N Pink Breast Cancer Charity.
Karolina encourages viewers of this exhibition ‘to appreciate the small moments, to make mistakes, to get up when you fall and just experience life, because it is temporary experience’.
Opening exhibition event: Saturday 15th November at 2pm.
This exhibition will be on display until Friday 12th December.
More information: https://millenniumcourt.co.uk/healing/
