Robert Motyka is a video creator, video animator, projection artist, educator, and human rights activist, with a particular focus on supporting Polish LGBT people. Raised in Przemyśl, on the border between the European Union and Ukraine, he grew up in a culturally complex landscape shaped by migration, crossings, and layered identities. These early experiences continue to inform his artistic practice, which explores belonging, memory, and collective storytelling through a blend of traditional and digital media.
Robert graduated with a master’s degree in graphic arts in Lublin, Poland, in 2001, where he also co‑created a student art group and an independent art magazine promoting the work of fellow students. During the early 2000s, he collaborated with the International Youth Meeting Center in Oświęcim/Auschwitz, working with Polish and German students as a designer and art workshop facilitator. Meeting two former prisoners of the concentration camps—who shared their stories with the young participants—became one of the most formative experiences of his life, shaping his commitment to human rights, dialogue, and socially engaged art. He later completed an HND in Audio Visual Technology at Edinburgh College in 2011, expanding his technical expertise in digital media production.
Fascinated by light from the beginning of his career, Robert first worked with Kodak slide projectors, creating analogue multi‑image compositions. As technology evolved, he transitioned into digital multiprojection and video animation, developing a visual language grounded in typography, visual grammar, colour theory, and symbolism.
Throughout his career, Robert has worked creatively in Poland, the USA, Germany, Austria, and Scotland, developing a multidisciplinary practice that spans video animation, video design, projection mapping, community arts, and creative education. A key part of his practice involves transforming analogue artwork created during community art workshops into digital video pieces or projection works, extending participants’ voices into public space and shared cultural environments.
In Edinburgh, Robert has collaborated with many enthusiasts of art and technology through Kino Klub, Projector Club, and New Media Scotland, contributing to experimental screenings, collective creative labs, and interdisciplinary projects. He has also collaborated with the Polish Cultural Festival Association, supporting intercultural events and community‑driven artistic initiatives.
He works as a lecturer in Image Design and Projection Mapping at the Edinburgh Lighting and Sound School, Edinburgh Napier University, and the Federation of Scottish Theatre.
Together with artist Marta Adamowicz, Robert serves as co‑director of Beetroots Collective CIC. Their socially engaged, participatory projects centre migrant experiences, intercultural dialogue, and community empowerment, demonstrating how visual storytelling, light, and collective creativity can strengthen community bonds and inspire meaningful social change.