Joseph Stanislaus Ostoja-Kotkowski AM,

FRSA The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...

(also known as J.S Ostoja-Kotkowski, Ostoja and Stan Ostoja-Kotkowski; 28 December 19222 April 1994) was best known for his ground-breaking work in chromasonics, laser kinetics and 'sound and image' productions. He earned recognition in Australia and overseas for his pioneering work in laser sound and image technology. His work included painting (instrumental in developing geometric art in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

), photography, film-making, theatre design, fabric design, murals, kinetic and static sculpture, stained glass, vitreous enamel murals, op-collages, computer graphics, and laser art. Ostoja flourished between 1940 and 1994. Ostoja's films are still being exhibited.

Biography

Joseph Stanislaus Ostoja-Kotkowski was born in Golub,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

, on 28 December 1922, descending from an old noble family that was part of the

Clan of Ostoja The Clan of Ostoja (old Polish: ''Ostoya'') was a powerful group of knights and lords in late-medieval Europe. The clan encompassed families in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (including present-day Belarus and Ukraine), Hungary and Upper Hu ...

. He studied drawing under Olgierd Vetesco in

Przasnysz Przasnysz (; yi, פראשניץ, russian: Прасныш) is a town in north-central Poland. Located in the Masovian Voivodship, about 110 km north of Warsaw and about 115 km south of Olsztyn, it is the capital of Przasnysz County. It h ...

from 1940-1945. After winning a scholarship, he completed his studies at the Düsseldorf Academy of Fine Arts in Germany in 1949.June Edwards (2018),
Ostoja-Kotkowski, Joseph Stanislaw (Stan) (1922–1994)
', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. Retrieved 8 December 2019. In 1950 Ostoja migrated to Australia, arriving in Melbourne where he supported himself with work as a labourer. He enrolled at the Victorian School of Fine Arts

National Gallery School The National Gallery of Victoria Art School, associated with the National Gallery of Victoria, was a private fine arts college founded in 1867 and was Australia's leading art school of 50 years. It is also referred to as the 'National Gallery ...

under

Alan Sumner Alan Robert Sumner, MBE (10 February 1911, Melbourne – 20 October 1994, Melbourne) was an Australian artist; a painter, printmaker, teacher and stained glass designer. Education Alan Sumner studied at Melbourne's National Gallery Art School ...

and

William Dargie Captain (armed forces), Captain Sir William Alexander Dargie (4 June 1912 – 26 July 2003) was a renowned Australian painter, known especially for his portrait paintings. He won the Archibald Prize, Australia's premier award for portrait ...

1950-1955 and there introduced the new abstract expression of Europe both to lecturers and students. He settled in the Adelaide Hills, South Australia, on the Booth estate at

Stirling Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a city in central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its me ...

, living under the patronage of the Booth family for over 40 years (Freya Booth, the wife of Edward Stirling Booth, was a daughter of the artist Sir

Hans Heysen Sir Hans Heysen (8 October 18772 July 1968) was a German-born Australian artist. He became a household name for his watercolours of monumental Australian gum trees. He is one of Australia's best known landscape painters. Heysen also produced ...

). His first one-man exhibition was also in South Australia at the Royal Society of Arts, Adelaide. In 1956 Ostoja met and collaborated wit
Ian Davidson
in the production of the short film ''Five South Australian Artists'', and became involved in stage and theatre set design. He co-produced several experimental films again with Ian Davidson, including ''The Quest of Time'' in 1957 Ostoja's work in abstract expression began to receive accolades. He won the Cornell Prize for the canvas ''Form in Landscape''. He started to design sets for theatre and dance including for ''

Six Characters in Search of an Author ''Six Characters in Search of an Author'' ( it, Sei personaggi in cerca d'autore, link=no ) is an Italian play by Luigi Pirandello, written and first performed in 1921. An absurdist fiction, absurdist metatheatrical, metatheatric play about th ...

'' by

Luigi Pirandello Luigi Pirandello (; 28 June 1867 – 10 December 1936) was an Italian dramatist, novelist, poet, and short story writer whose greatest contributions were his plays. He was awarded the 1934 Nobel Prize in Literature for "his almost magical power ...

(1957); the South Australian production of

Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish novelist, dramatist, short story writer, theatre director, poet, and literary translator. His literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal and tragicomic expe ...

's '' Waiting for Godot'' (1958);

Gaetano Donizetti Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti (29 November 1797 – 8 April 1848) was an Italian composer, best known for his almost 70 operas. Along with Gioachino Rossini and Vincenzo Bellini, he was a leading composer of the '' bel canto'' opera style dur ...

's '' Elixir of Love'', with novel light settings and modulations, for the

Elder Conservatorium The Elder Conservatorium of Music, also known as "The Con", is Australia's senior academy of music and is located in the centre of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. It is named in honour of its benefactor, Sir Thomas Elder. Dating in ...

of the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

which used his techniques for their Opera Workshops (1959); for ''The Egg''; and for two performances of the South Australian Ballet Theatre with light/colour abstract presentations (1959). 1960 This year he designed sets for a new opera group which would eventually grow into the South Australian Opera Company. Among other theatrical events, he designed and executed the scenery for ''Moon on a Rainbow Shawl'' by

Errol John Errol John (20 December 1924 – 10 July 1988) was a Trinidad and Tobago actor and playwright who emigrated to the United Kingdom in 1951. Biography Early years in Trinidad John was born in Port of Spain, Trinidad, on 20 December 1924, the ...

, and '' The Teahouse of the August Moon'' by John Patrick, (a production by the

University of Adelaide Theatre Guild The University of Adelaide Theatre Guild is a South Australian not-for-profit amateur theatre companyHibberd, M, 2012, About the Theatre Guild, http://www.adelaide.edu.au/theatreguild/about/ based on the North Terrace campus of the University ...

). He received artistic satisfaction but little financial reward for these efforts. In this year also, he staged a visual production on the theme of

Orpheus Orpheus (; Ancient Greek: Ὀρφεύς, classical pronunciation: ; french: Orphée) is a Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet in ancient Greek religion. He was also a renowned poet and, according to the legend, travelled with Jaso ...

, using dance, music and voice with several projectors. This was the first attempt at

quadraphonic sound Quadraphonic (or quadrophonic and sometimes quadrasonic) sound – equivalent to what is now called 4.0 surround sound – uses four audio channels in which speakers are positioned at the four corners of a listening space. The system allows for th ...

in Australia, working in collaboration with Derek Jolly, who provided the sound and projection equipment. It was also the first demonstration of "Chromasonics" - the science of translating sound into visual images. Ostoja then designed innovative "abstracted" scenery for a production of ''

The Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premie ...

'' and

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...

's ''

The Turn of the Screw ''The Turn of the Screw'' is an 1898 horror novella by Henry James which first appeared in serial format in ''Collier's Weekly'' (January 27 – April 16, 1898). In October 1898, it was collected in ''The Two Magics'', published by Macmill ...

''. 1961 Ostoja designed the sets for the controversial South Australian production of

Patrick White Patrick Victor Martindale White (28 May 1912 – 30 September 1990) was a British-born Australian writer who published 12 novels, three short-story collections, and eight plays, from 1935 to 1987. White's fiction employs humour, florid prose, ...

's ''Ham Funeral'' - also

Alan Seymour Alan Seymour (6 June 192723 March 2015) was an Australian playwright and author. He is best known for the play ''The One Day of the Year'' (1958). His international reputation rests not only on this early play, but also on his many screenplays, ...

's ''Swamp Creatures'', both performed by the University of Adelaide Theatre Guild. He designed and constructed six stained glass windows for the Refectory at the University of Adelaide. In this period Ostoja designed special lights and gauzes for difficult effects required in an ambitious production of the opera ''

Don Carlos ''Don Carlos'' is a five-act grand opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi to a French-language libretto by Joseph Méry and Camille du Locle, based on the dramatic play '' Don Carlos, Infant von Spanien'' (''Don Carlos, Infante of Spain'') by Friedri ...

'' by the Opera Workshop, for the Elder Conservatorium. 1962 Ostoja designed and built sets for the production of ''J.S'', by Archibald MacLeish, for the second

Adelaide Festival of Arts The Adelaide Festival of Arts, also known as the Adelaide Festival, an arts festival, takes place in the South Australian capital of Adelaide in March each year. Started in 1960, it is a major celebration of the arts and a significant cultural ...

. He exhibited vitreous enamel works in Melbourne's Argus Gallery. Max Harris, in '' The Bulletin'' of 20 October 1962, praised Ostoja's sets for ''My Cousin from Fiji'' in Union Theatre, Adelaide, and his technique of rear screen projections as later adopted throughout Australia. 1963 Ostoja continued to develop Multi-Image projections, demonstrating for the first time in Australia the concept later to be known as 'audio-visuals!'. Ostoja gave

Sir Herbert Read Sir Herbert Edward Read, (; 4 December 1893 – 12 June 1968) was an English art historian, poet, literary critic and philosopher, best known for numerous books on art, which included influential volumes on the role of art in education. Read ...

, the art critic, a personal viewing of one of his visual presentations. At Christmas, in the Elder Conservatorium, collaborating again with Derek Jolly, Ostoja gave what was probably the world's first "visual concert", using special projectors and incorporating music, colours and shapes. 1964 With fellow Adelaide artist John Dallwitz, Ostoja co-designed the first of several experimental dance and stage productions in the Adelaide Festival of Arts ''Sound and Image.'' The production featured Adelaide dancer Elizabeth Dalman. Also for the Adelaide Festival of Arts of that year, he designed the largest light mosaic ever staged up to that time, upon the facade of an 11-storey building. Ostoja was invited to New Zealand, and exhibited the first electronically generated images in Australia in Melbourne, at the Argus Gallery. His design for the bas-relief mural for the new B.P. building in Melbourne was the subject of a film which won the "Blue Ribbon" Award in the American Film Festival in New York. 1965 Ostoja designed and made the first light kinetic mural in Australia, and continued to evolve theatrical works using multi-screen and Multi-projector techniques. The Production of

Jean Genet Jean Genet (; – ) was a French novelist, playwright, poet, essayist, and political activist. In his early life he was a vagabond and petty criminal, but he later became a writer and playwright. His major works include the novels ''The Thief's ...

's ''

The Balcony ''The Balcony'' (french: Le Balcon) is a play by the French dramatist Jean Genet. It is set in an unnamed city that is experiencing a revolutionary uprising in the streets; most of the action takes place in an upmarket brothel that functions as a ...

'' was very controversial. With Elizabeth Dalman, Ostoja produced new dance forms for Melbourne Television. He introduced

Op Art Op art, short for optical art, is a style of visual art that uses optical illusions. Op artworks are abstract, with many better-known pieces created in black and white. Typically, they give the viewer the impression of movement, hidden images ...

to Australia, both at South Yarra Gallery in Melbourne, and Gallery A in Sydney. 1966 With John Dallwitz, Ostoja was invited by the Adelaide Festival of Arts to present more experimental theatre, ''Sound and image 1966''. This highly acclaimed production incorporated Australian poetry into the sound, electronic music, and visual images and featured the dancer Antonio Rodrigues. The architect Robin Boyd commissioned Ostoja to design two large Op murals for the Australian Pavilion entrance at the

Expo 67 The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most su ...

. Ostoja was awarded a

Churchill Fellowship Winston Churchill Memorial Trusts (WCMT) are three independent but related living memorials to Sir Winston Churchill, based in the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. They exist for the purpose of administering Churchill Fellowships, a ...

, which enabled him to have extensive world travel, comparing art and technology in many countries. He began to work with language, contemporary poetry and prose, and computers. 1967 John Dallwitz and Ostoja presented ''Sound and Inage'' at the Festival of Perth. In Berne, Switzerland, Ostoja received the
Excellence F.I.A.P." Award
for innovative photography. 1968 At the Adelaide Festival of Arts, Ostoja and John Dallwitz collaborated again to stage ''Sound and Image.'' This was the first theatre production in the world to use a laser beam. It also included the first science fiction play (''The Veldt'' by

Ray Bradbury Ray Douglas Bradbury (; August 22, 1920June 5, 2012) was an American author and screenwriter. One of the most celebrated 20th-century American writers, he worked in a variety of modes, including fantasy, science fiction, horror, mystery, and r ...

) performed in Australia. Ostoja's theatre methods were increasingly attracting the attention of critics to how plays were staged. "Chromasonics", developed and introduced by Ostoja, was now being used extensively in the entertainment industry. 1969 Ostoja staged Krzysztof Penderecki's St. Luke Passion, a controversial, contemporary religious work. The South Australian '' The Advertiser'' wrote an extensive critique of Ostoja's work. Robin Boyd commissioned Ostoja to build a "chromasonic" exhibit for the

Expo '70 The or Expo 70 was a world's fair held in Suita, Osaka Prefecture, Japan between March 15 and September 13, 1970. Its theme was "Progress and Harmony for Mankind." In Japanese, Expo '70 is often referred to as . It was the first world's fair ...

in Osaka. 1970 Ostoja presented an Australian Aboriginal

Dreamtime The Dreaming, also referred to as Dreamtime, is a term devised by early anthropologists to refer to a religio-cultural worldview attributed to Australian Aboriginal mythology, Australian Aboriginal beliefs. It was originally used by Francis Ja ...

theme in his "Sound and Image" theatre, working with leading contemporary figures in poetry, music and dance. This was the first production of its kind in Australia, and appeared after the Festival in Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra and Perth. Ostoja's ''Space Scape'' mural, sixty feet long by ten feet high, won the Australia-wide competition for a mural for Adelaide Airport. His high 'light and sound' structure for the Adelaide Festival was the first of its kind in the world. 1971 Ostoja awarded a Creative Arts Fellowship at the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies and ...

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

. His 18-month stay resulted in the design and building of a "Chromasonics unit-laser", a Chromasonic tower, and a world premiere of a ''Synchronos'' concert. 1972 With

Don Burrows Donald Vernon Burrows (8 August 1928 – 12 March 2020) was an Australian jazz and swing musician who played clarinet, saxophone and flute. Life and career Donald Vernon Burrows was born on 8 August 1928, the only child of Vernon and Beryl a ...

and

Don Banks Donald Oscar Banks (25 October 19235 September 1980) was an Australian composer of concert, jazz, and commercial music. Early life and education Jazz was Banks' earliest and strongest musical influence. He learned the saxophone as a boy in Aust ...

, Ostoja presented ''Synchronos 72'', where one could "hear the colours and see the sounds". Ostoja added ''Cymatics'', developed during the Fellowship, to his workshop repertoire. He was invited to exhibit his photography in the National Gallery, Melbourne. 1973 Ostoja received a Fellowship from the Australian American Education Association to study art and technology in the U.S.A. He studied laser art and technology, using a newly developed material in his optical collages. 1974 Using several lasers, Ostoja designed sets and a special curtain for the complex work '' The Excursions of Mr. Brouček'' by Janáček, the first opera produced at the new

Adelaide Festival Theatre Adelaide Festival Centre, Australia's first multi-purpose arts centre and the home of South Australia's performing arts, was built in the 1970s, designed by Hassell Architects. The Festival Theatre opened in June 1973 with the rest of the centr ...

complex. 1975 The artist's ''Laser - Chromasonics'' (1972) and ''Laser Chromasonic Tower Mark III'' exhibited for the Festival of Creative Art and Sciences, Canberra. Ostoja commissioned to design a vitreous enamel mural for the Earth Science building,

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

. 1976 Ostoja exhibited works in

vitreous enamel Vitreous enamel, also called porcelain enamel, is a material made by fusing powdered glass to a substrate by firing, usually between . The powder melts, flows, and then hardens to a smooth, durable vitreous coating. The word comes from the Lati ...

on steel, optical collages, and for the first time in Australia, collages incorporating

Kirlian photography Kirlian photography is a collection of photographic techniques used to capture the phenomenon of electrical coronal discharges. It is named after Semyon Kirlian, who, in 1939, accidentally discovered that if an object on a photographic plate i ...

. The Premier,

Don Dunstan Donald Allan Dunstan (21 September 1926 – 6 February 1999) was an Australian politician who served as the 35th premier of South Australia from 1967 to 1968, and again from 1970 to 1979. He was a member of the House of Assembly (MHA) for th ...

, opened this exhibition at Lidum's Gallery, Adelaide. Ostoja's ''Theremin 74'', using electronics and stainless steel, purchased by the Tasmanian Art Gallery. Ostoja commissioned to produce a large bass relief mural for the new

Nauru House Nauru House (also called 80 Collins Street) is a landmark 52-storey building located in the Melbourne central business district, Victoria, Australia. The building was designed by architectural firm Perrott Lyon Timlock & Kesa and completed in 1 ...

, in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

. 1977 Ostoja displayed exhibits of vitreous enamels, optical collages, and kinetics with six lasers at the Australian Galleries Exhibition in Melbourne. He was commissioned to undertake a feasibility study for a solar mural by the

. 1978 The artist's computer poem ''Tidal Element'' (the first computer poem composed in Australia) featured in a special issue of "Australian Literary Studies" (Adelaide University). Ostoja created a new Laser Chromasonic Tower, which produced kinetic laser images and incandescent lights, for the Royal Adelaide International Expo 78. Ostoja's experiments with an

argon Argon is a chemical element with the symbol Ar and atomic number 18. It is in group 18 of the periodic table and is a noble gas. Argon is the third-most abundant gas in Earth's atmosphere, at 0.934% (9340 ppmv). It is more than twice as abu ...

laser gave rise to a new organic image in his work laser images, including "Astroid" and "Harmonics". 1980 The

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...

produced a half-hour documentary on Ostoja's work, the program screening on 13 April 1980. The Governor-General and his wife visited the artist's studio in Stirling. Christopher Hunt, Artistic Director of the 1980 Adelaide Festival of Arts, invited Ostoja to exhibit his laser kinetics in conjunction with a holographic exhibit from the New York Museum. The show, ''Futuresight'', in the Melville Hall, Adelaide, was opened by Sir

Mark Oliphant Sir Marcus Laurence Elwin Oliphant, (8 October 1901 – 14 July 2000) was an Australian physicist and humanitarian who played an important role in the first experimental demonstration of nuclear fusion and in the development of nuclear weapon ...

. The magazine '' Scientific Australian'' published an article on this exhibition in the No.4, Volume 4 Edition. 1981–1982 Ostoja prepared for an exhibition in Sydney, and became interested artistically in Australian jade. Commissioned by Dr Nina Christensen of Melbourne University to construct a jade window. At this Adelaide Festival of Arts he presented a different kind of laser concert. ''Art in Australia'', Vol. 19, No. 3 published an extensive article on Ostoja's works, covering a twenty-year period. 1983 Barry Jones opened Ostoja's two major exhibitions at the Barry Stern Gallery, Sydney - one on optical collages, and a laser kinetics, music and sound exhibition. It is suggested that Ostoja donate his large, personal collection of photographs and a full documentation of his career, to Melbourne University's Australian Collection. The collection was subsequently deposited in th
Baillieu Library
1984 Ostoja used a vapour laser, then built by Quentron Optics in Adelaide. He presented a laser kinetics concert for th
Ballarat Festival
1985 Using computer generated images, Ostoja staged a laser concert at

Wayville Showgrounds The Adelaide Showground holds many of Adelaide's most popular events, including the Royal Adelaide Show. The Showground (also popularly known as the Wayville Showgrounds) is located in the inner-southern Adelaide suburb of Wayville, just so ...

, Adelaide, to celebrate the finale of the inaugural Adelaide Grand Prix.

Australia Post Australia Post, formally the Australian Postal Corporation, is the government business enterprise that provides postal services in Australia. The head office of Australia Post is located in Bourke Street, Melbourne, which also serves as a post o ...

produced a stamp issue designed by Ostoja (using a laser), to launch the first Australian "electronic mail" system. 1986 Ostoja invited to stage a laser concert for the South Australian Jubilee Celebrations. He constructed the ''Solaris'', a continually changing, solar kinetic mural, at the

CSIRO The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is an Australian Government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentar ...

. Division of Applied Physics, Lindfield, N.S.W, and was invited to exhibit it at

Expo '88 World Expo 88, also known as Expo 88, was a specialised Expo held in Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia, during a six-month period between Saturday, 30 April 1988 and Sunday, 30 October 1988, inclusive. The theme of the Expo wa ...

in Brisbane. 1987 Ostoja redesigned the shape of ''Solaris'' for the Brisbane Expo. For the Director of the new Scitech Discovery Centr

Perth, Ostoja designed, produced, and exhibited a work which reveals the effects of theremin and light. 1988 to 1989

Australian Bicentenary The bicentenary of Australia was celebrated in 1988. It marked 200 years since the arrival of the First Fleet of British convict ships at Sydney in 1788. History The bicentennial year marked Captain Arthur Phillip's arrival with the 11 ships ...

celebrations included a project sponsored by the Polish community to honour the name of Australia's highest mountain,

Mount Kosciuszko Mount Kosciuszko ( ; Ngarigo: , ), previously spelled Mount Kosciusko, is mainland Australia's tallest mountain, at 2,228 metres (7,310 ft) above sea level. It is located on the Main Range of the Snowy Mountains in Kosciuszko National ...

. In collaboration with sculptor John Dowie, Ostoja constructed a geometrical, stainless steel monument at the entrance to the town of

Cooma, New South Wales Cooma is a town in the south of New South Wales, Australia. It is located south of the national capital, Canberra, via the Monaro Highway. It is also on the Snowy Mountains Highway, connecting Bega with the Riverina. At the , Cooma had a po ...

. Reading about

chaos theory Chaos theory is an interdisciplinary area of scientific study and branch of mathematics focused on underlying patterns and deterministic laws of dynamical systems that are highly sensitive to initial conditions, and were once thought to have co ...

and Professor Mandelbrot's ''Beauty of Fractals'', Ostoja began to work in this area. An article published in ''

The Australian ''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition, ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964.Bruns, Axel. "3.1. The active audience: Transforming journalism from gatekeeping to gatew ...

'', October 1989, revealed some of Ostoja's considerable output of work in the field of computer graphics in this new field. 1991-1993 Ostoja was invited by the

National Philharmonic in Warsaw The National Philharmonic in Warsaw (Polish: ''Filharmonia Narodowa w Warszawie'') is a Polish cultural institution, located at 5 Jasna Street in Warsaw. The building was built between 1900 and 1901, under the direction of Karol Kozłowski, t ...

, Ostoja staged ''SYNKRONOS'' concert - workshop using 13 blue green and red lasers and incandescent lamps to translate works of traditional and contemporary composers into kinetic laser images and shapes. 1994 Ostoja was involved in part of the 1994 Adelaide Festival's ''Technilusions''. He displayed some of his Fractals and Mandelbrots and was displayed with "current" and "state of the art" technologies Animation, Virtual Reality and

CD-ROM A CD-ROM (, compact disc read-only memory) is a type of read-only memory consisting of a pre-pressed optical compact disc that contains data. Computers can read—but not write or erase—CD-ROMs. Some CDs, called enhanced CDs, hold both comput ...

. He died at home on 2 April 1994 of heat failure, in the cottage ''Arbroath'' on the Booth estate at Stirling South Australia, where he had lived under the patronage of the Booth family for over 40 years. His studio was on the same property.

Collections

Ostoja's work is held in the following collections: *

Art Gallery of New South Wales The Art Gallery of New South Wales (AGNSW), founded as the New South Wales Academy of Art in 1872 and known as the National Art Gallery of New South Wales between 1883 and 1958, is located in The Domain, Sydney, Australia. It is the most importa ...

(''Nymphex'', ''Sonix'', and ''Sunrise''.) *

Art Gallery of South Australia The Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA), established as the National Gallery of South Australia in 1881, is located in Adelaide. It is the most significant visual arts museum in the Australian state of South Australia. It has a collection of ...

(32 works including sculpture, drawing, photograph, painting) *

National Gallery of Victoria The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and most visited art museum. The NGV houses an encyclopedic art collection across two ...

(''Crimson'', ''Enclosed spheres'', ''Pavo'', and ''The planet''.) * Newmarch Gallery (''Untitled''), *

Powerhouse Museum The Powerhouse Museum is the major branch of the Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences (MAAS) in Sydney, the others being the historic Sydney Observatory at Observatory Park, Sydney, Observatory Hill, and the newer Museums Discovery Centre at Castle ...

(''Untitled'', ''Untitled'', ''Untitled'', ''Untitled'', ''Untitled'', ''The Monument'', ''Untitled'', *

Reserve Bank of Australia The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is Australia's central bank and banknote issuing authority. It has had this role since 14 January 1960, when the ''Reserve Bank Act 1959'' removed the central banking functions from the Commonwealth Bank. T ...

(''Form in landscape'') * RMIT Design Archives (''Untitled'')

Exhibitions and performances

* 2019: 'Josef Stanislaw Ostoja-Kotkowski: Solid Light', McClelland Sculpture Park+Gallery, April 1 – July 14

Publications

* Ostoja-Kotkowski, S. (1975). Audio-kinetic art with laser beams and electronic systems. Leonardo, 8(2), 142-144. * Ostoja-Kotkowski, J. S. (1977). 'Audio-Kinetic Art: The Construction and Operation of My'Laser-Chromasonic Tower''. In ''Leonardo'', 10(1), 51-53.

Publications about Ostoja-Kotkowski

* Hackett, E. (1966). Electronic Painting: The'Images' of Ostoja-Kotkowski. In ''Meanjin Quarterly'', 25(4), 494. * Gadomska, A., & Gadomski, K. (2005). 'Józef Stanisław Ostoja-Kotkowski–prekursor sztuki laserowej w świecie.' In ''Zarządzanie w Kulturze'', 6, 267-270. * Krawczyk, A. (2005). 'Światło Świątyni Sybilli. Rzecz o muzeach dawniej, dzisiaj iw przyszłości'. In ''Zarządzanie w kulturze'', 6, 177-180. * Olek, J. (2017). 'Reprezentacja zawarta w odbiciu'. ''Dziennikarstwo i Media'', 8, 17-28.

Awards

* 1957, 1959: Cornell Prize Exhibition of the Contemporary Arts Society of South Australia * 1972:

Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...

* 1990: Medal of Merit for Polish Culture * 1992: Member of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

(AM).It's an Honour
Retrieved 8 December 2019.

References

External links

State Library, South Australia Archives
Summary The group consists of files relating to J.S. Ostoja-Kotkowski's life and art; papers, programs, pamphlets, photographs, slides, negatives relating to his theatre designs, sculptures, murals, BP star, art, film, laser shows, computer graphics, stained glass and photography; computer disks; original art works; a theatre set model; models of sculptures; papers relating to his immigration and his relationship to his Polish family and the Polish community; films, videos and audio tapes.
Explorer in Sound and Light - Ian S Macdonald - PhD Thesis
Explorer in Sound and Light is a study of the works of Joseph Stanislaw Ostoja-Kotkowski, which argues his place as a pioneer in the development of experimental arts in Australia from his introduction of Abstract Expressionism to the Australian art fraternity, his development of Theatre Set Design, Sound and Image productions and his experimentation with electronic images, laser beam technology and performance.
Stanisław Ostoja Kotkowski - Strona GŁówna
* ttp://nla.gov.au/nla.ms-ms6566 Papers of Kenneth Hince - MS 6566br>Papers of James Murdoch - MS 8372Records consisting of original films (some with soundtracks) made by JS. Ostoja-KotkowskiArt & Australia magazine, Vol 32 No 2 Summer 1994Stanisła Ostoja Kotkowski
Józef Stanisław Ostoja-Kotkowski

SA 175 Professional Historians of Australia. Explorer in Light

From dawn to dusk Stanislaw Ostoja-Kotkowski Exhibition

Public Lecture - Uniwersytet Artystyczny w Poznaniu
Dr Ian Macdonald: Explorer in Sound and Light, a study of the works of Joseph Stanislaw Ostoja-Kotkowski
Accessed 26 March 2014. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ostoja-Kotkowski, Joseph Stanislaus 1922 births 1994 deaths People from Golub-Dobrzyń 20th-century Polish artists 20th-century Australian artists Stagecraft Computer graphics Laser art Clan of Ostoja Kunstakademie Düsseldorf alumni Members of the Order of Australia Recipients of the Decoration of Honor Meritorious for Polish Culture Multimedia artists Polish emigrants to Australia