Gabi von Seltmann

Directing, production, interdisciplinary art

Gabi von Seltmann is an interdisciplinary artist, art producer and animator. In her performance-based art, she uses various mediums, such as photography, video, 3D outdoor projections. Her art seeks to answer questions on memory, identity and significance of historical events and processes.
Gabi was born in Poland, but she is in constant move required by her artistic research and development of her projects. In recent years Gabi has created remarkable videos and performance connected to the Jewish themes, which requires a constant travelling, which give a specific mood to Gabriel’s art, so important for the world of fluid identities and nomadic lifestyles.
In her projects, Gabi reaches a wide audience: not only to people interested in the history of minority communities, but to general public. She believes that, thanks to art shown in public spaces, art in its most powerful potential becomes accessible to everyone. It is possible to move the human imagination, encourage reflection and positive action, and the feeling of hope.
One of Gabi’s most memorable project is “The Great Synagogue Restores Memory,” a multimedia event originated in 2018 for the 75th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising (in 19/04/1943). In this powerful performance the images of the Great Synagogue (demolished at the end of the Ghetto Uprising) are projected onto the façade of the commercial building that now stands on the synagogue’s site. The projection includes the yiddish word “LOVE”/ליבע, as the artist believes that death and destruction can only be defeated through the act of recollection and love.
Recently, Gabi together with here international team made a new outdoor projection, which took place as part of the 1700 years of Jewish life in Germany and was a big outdoor projection of the synagogue burnt during the Crystal Night pogrom in Siegen.

In addition, Gabi has produced documentary and public service announcements advocating equality and tolerance in Polish society.

Gabi von Seltmann’s projects have been produced in cooperation with such major Polish institutions as Open Republic Society, Society Jewish Historical Institute, and The POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews. For her current project #BREATH. Be the light, Gabriela recently received support from the German Ministerium für Kultur und Wissenschaft des Landes Nordrhein-Westfalen.