Black Country Digital Firsts: Introducing Sylwia Ciszewska-Peciak
This profile is part of our Meet the Next Cohort series which introduces the artists and collectives selected for the second round of Black Country Digital Firsts. Each participant is exploring bold digital ideas that push creative boundaries and expand access to culture in the region.
Introducing: Sylwia Ciszewska-Peciak
Sylwia Ciszewska-Peciak is creating a powerful digital and sculptural artwork that explores the emotional landscape of motherhood. Working with photography, handcrafted forms, and animation, she is merging traditional techniques with digital tools to create moving images that express the layered and shifting identities within maternal experience.
What inspired you to apply for Black Country Digital Firsts and how did you hope it would impact your creative practice?
I applied for Black Country Digital Firsts because I wanted to explore how physical, handmade forms could evolve into digital, moving artworks. My practice has always been rooted in photography and emotion, but I wanted to find new ways to express the layered, shifting experience of motherhood. The programme offered an opportunity not only to expand creatively but also to learn new digital skills, including animation and video editing. That would allow me to bring motion and transformation into my visual language. Access to this knowledge and technology is helping me bridge traditional craftsmanship with the dynamic possibilities of digital art.
Can you share a little about the project you are working on and why you feel it is particularly bold or imaginative?
My project, I’m a Patchwork Mother, explores the emotional landscape of motherhood through a set of hand-built cubes. Each cube face features a fragment of my self-portrait, representing emotions such as joy, anger, fear, sadness, and surprise. Inspired by a childhood puzzle, the cubes can be rearranged to reveal new images and new emotional configurations, reflecting how a mother’s identity is constantly shifting.
At first, the work existed as a delicate sculpture, made of paper, fragile and easily reshaped, before being brought to life through stop-motion animation. The physical and digital merge to reveal the fluid, transformative nature of motherhood. I feel this project is bold because it takes something deeply personal and turns it into an interactive, participatory artwork that invites reflection and connection.
How do you believe fostering digital creativity can contribute to the cultural landscape of the Black Country?
The Black Country has a rich tradition of making, from metalwork to textiles, and digital creativity is a natural continuation of that legacy. It allows artists to reinterpret our industrial and craft-based heritage through new technologies. By supporting digital experimentation, we can build bridges between the handmade and the virtual, keeping the spirit of innovation alive in the region while reflecting its diverse contemporary voices.
What has been the most valuable lesson or insight you have gained from the mentoring and advice sessions provided through Black Country Digital Firsts?
The most valuable insight for me has been learning how to integrate technology into my process without losing the emotional and tactile qualities of my work. The mentoring has also opened the door to entirely new skills, from animation to video editing and digital composition, giving me the tools to express my ideas in ways I hadn’t previously imagined. I’ve learned to see technology not as something intimidating, but as an extension of my creative process, a way to give motion, rhythm, and life to still images.
In what ways do you think Black Country Digital Firsts can amplify diverse voices and perspectives within the Black Country?
Black Country Digital Firsts creates a platform for artists to tell stories that might otherwise remain unseen, stories that are deeply personal yet universally relatable. By supporting a range of disciplines, identities, and perspectives, BCDF ensures that the cultural identity of the Black Country reflects the people who truly live and create here. Digital art allows those voices to travel further, crossing boundaries of place and access.
How do you now envision the role of technology in enhancing your creative practice going forward?
Technology has become a vital bridge between the physical and emotional worlds I explore. It allows me to animate still images, make sculpture move, and give voice to the inner transformations that define my work. Learning to use industry-standard software and animation techniques has opened up a completely new creative language for me. Going forward, I want to continue developing these skills, blending film, motion, and sound with my photographic practice to create immersive, emotionally resonant experiences.
What advice would you give to other creatives in the region who are considering applying for funding and support?
Be honest about what moves you. Funding opportunities like Black Country Digital Firsts aren’t just about technology, they’re about ideas, curiosity, and growth. Start with what you care about most and let the digital tools follow that vision. Don’t be afraid to take risks or to learn as you go. The support, mentoring, and community you gain through programmes like this can transform not only your work but also how you see yourself as an artist.
Black Country Digital Firsts is a unique partnership between Creative Black Country and The Space that aims to build digital creative confidence, inspire excellence in the area, foster digital creativity, commission artists, and offer creative support via mentoring and advice sessions.