Adam Mickiewicz Monument, Vilnius

Last updated

Adam Mickiewicz Monument in Vilnius , Lithuania is a monument in the vicinity of the Saint Anne's Church and the Bernardine Monastery, by Maironio Street (St. Anne's Street before 1945) along the shores of the Neris River.

Contents

History

The first design proposed for a monument of Adam Mickiewicz for Vilnius was promoted by Zbigniew Pronaszko of Vilnius University (then, Stefan Batory University in the Second Polish Republic). However, in May 1925, a contest was declared for the proposed monument. [1] : 53  The period for submitting designs was extended a number of times thanks to the deep interest in the project by the artistic scene, with 67 designs ultimately submitted. [1] : 53  The jury consisted of Vilnius's Municipal authorities and representatives of the arts scene, with General Lucjan Żeligowski at the helm. [1] : 54 

First prize went to Avant-Garde artist Stanisław Szukalski, Second Prize to Rafał Jachimowicz, with the third prize awarded to Mieczysław Lubelski. [1] : 54  According to Szukalski's design Mickiewicz was naked, lying upon a sacrificial altar. The artist had the sculpture situated on a large pedestal in the shape of an Aztec pyramid. [1] : 55  A White Eagle- Poland's national symbol was perched at the figure's side where it symbolically drank blood from the poet's wound. [1] : 55 

Szukalski's design was highly divisive, with strong emotions coming to the surface that were for and against the design, among Poland's intelligentsia, leadership, art critics as well as ordinary individuals. [1] : 56–66  The polarized atmosphere led the monument committee to arrange for a new contest, this time consisting of only concepts by artists that were invited. [1] : 56–66  The winner was Henryk Kuna, whose proposal was chosen. However, due to a number of problems involving financing as well as a suitable location, the monument's construction dragged on. [1] : 56–66  With the outbreak of World War II and the incorporation of Vilnius into Lithuania, the project was abandoned. [1] : 56–66 

▸ This is at total variance with what we read on Lithuanian Wikipedia, where no monument by Szukalski is mentioned, nor anything answering to the description of a nude man on an altar. Instead, there, the monument is described — with a photograph of its inauguration in 1924 — as a cubist-style standing statue of the man.

Today's monument

The project was later revived in the 1980s, by Lithuanian sculptor Gediminas Jokūbonis, architect of the surrounding square: Vytautas Edmundas Čekanauskas. The monument was unveiled on April 18, 1984. The granite, from which the monument was carved was brought from Volhynia. The monument depicts Adam Mickiewicz leaning against a broken column. The entire composition measure 4.5 meters in height. Around the monument the first patriotic meeting that gave rise to the Independence Movement took place in 1987. In 1996, bas-reliefs from the never completed monument of Adama Mickiewicza by Henryk Kuna were placed around the monument. There are currently 6 bas-reliefs (out of 12 that were originally planned). They depicts scenes from Mickiewicz's work Dziady (Forefather's Eve):

The bas-reliefs are intended to create one composition with the monument.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henryk Sienkiewicz</span> Polish writer (1846–1916)

Henryk Adam Aleksander Pius Sienkiewicz, also known by the pseudonym Litwos, was a Polish epic writer. He is remembered for his historical novels, such as the Trilogy series and especially for his internationally known best-seller Quo Vadis (1896).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam Mickiewicz</span> Polish national poet, writer, and political activist (1798–1855)

Adam Bernard Mickiewicz was a Polish poet, dramatist, essayist, publicist, translator and political activist. He is regarded as national poet in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. He also largely influenced Ukrainian literature. A principal figure in Polish Romanticism, he is one of Poland's "Three Bards" and is widely regarded as Poland's greatest poet. He is also considered one of the greatest Slavic and European poets and has been dubbed a "Slavic bard". A leading Romantic dramatist, he has been compared in Poland and Europe to Byron and Goethe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stanisław Szukalski</span> Sculptor

Stanisław Szukalski was a Polish sculptor and painter who became a part of the Chicago Renaissance. Szukalski's art appears to show influences from ancient cultures, Egypt, Slavs, and Aztecs combined with elements of art nouveau and other currents of early 20th century European modernism - cubism, expressionism, futurism. During the 1920s, he was hailed as Poland's "greatest living artist". His art was dubbed "Bent Classicism".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coat of arms of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth</span>

The coat of arms of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth represented the union of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom and Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antoni Wiwulski</span> Polish and Lithuanian architect and sculptor

Antoni Wiwulski was a Polish-Lithuanian architect and sculptor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zbruch Idol</span> Ninth-century statue discovered in the 19th century in present-day Ukraine

The Zbruch Idol, Sviatovid is a 9th-century sculpture, more precisely an example of a bałwan, and one of the few monuments of pre-Christian Slavic beliefs. The pillar was commonly incorrectly associated with the Slavic deity Svetovit, although current opinions on the exact meaning of all the bas-reliefs and their symbols differ. It is thought that the three tiers of bas-relief represent the three levels of the world, from the bottom underworld, to the middle mortal world and the uppermost, largest, world of heavenly gods.

Dievdirbys is a Lithuanian wood carver who crafts Catholic statues of Jesus and the Christian saints. In the 18th-20th centuries, self-taught poor peasants mostly did it. The art is closely related to Lithuanian cross crafting, listed among Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, Vilnius</span> Roman Catholic church in Vilnius, Lithuania

The Church of St. Peter and St. Paul is a Roman Catholic church located in the Antakalnis neighbourhood of Vilnius, Lithuania. It is the centerpiece of a former monastery complex of the Canons Regular of the Lateran. Its interior has masterful compositions of some 2,000 stucco figures by Giovanni Pietro Perti and ornamentation by Giovanni Maria Galli and is unique in Europe. The church is considered a masterpiece of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Baroque. It was funded by Michał Kazimierz Pac, commemorating a victory over the Muscovites and their expulsion from Vilnius after six years of occupation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of St. Anne, Vilnius</span> Roman Catholic church in Vilnius, Lithuania

St. Anne's Church is a Roman Catholic church in Vilnius' Old Town, on the right bank of the Vilnia river established circa 1495–1500. It is a prominent example of both Flamboyant and Brick Gothic styles. St. Anne's is a prominent landmark in the Vilnius Old Town that enabled the district to be named as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is one of the most interesting examples of Gothic architecture in Lithuania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Józef Montwiłł</span> Polish-Lithuanian social worker, bank owner and philanthropist (1850–1911)

Józef Montwiłł was a Polish–Lithuanian nobleman, who was a bank owner and philanthropist, notable for the many social societies he founded. A descendant of a noble Lithuanian family, Montwiłł inherited a significant fortune, which he further increased through banking and investment. He financed numerous courses for the poor, among them, was a class of painting and arts, run by - among others - Józef Bałzukiewicz and Ivan Trutnev, from which graduated a renowned Lithuanian artist Juozas Zikaras.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bernardine Cemetery</span> Cemetery in Vilnius, Lithuania

The Bernardine Cemetery, is one of the three oldest cemeteries in Vilnius, Lithuania. It covers about 38,000 square metres and has an estimated 14,000 burial sites. It was established in 1810 by the Bernardine monks of the Church of St. Francis of Assisi, just east of the city center in the Užupis district, and is situated on an embankment of the Vilnia river. Its development was a consequence of Tsarist authorities of the Russian Empire prohibiting burying the dead near churches. The residents of Vilnius moved the cemetery to what was then the outskirts of the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vilnius Guggenheim Hermitage Museum</span> Lived in Lithuania

Vilnius Guggenheim Hermitage Museum was a proposed art museum in the city of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. On April 8, 2008, an international jury named Zaha Hadid, a British-Iraqi architect, the winner of the international design competition for the museum. The museum was initially scheduled to open in 2011. Later, it was announced, that museum was scheduled to open in 2013. However, the project was postponed due to alleged illegal channeling of funds to the Jonas Mekas Arts Center and has been under investigation since 2010. The museum project, as of March 2012, was reported as having regained support, including that of the Vilnius mayor, Arturas Zuokas, even though the embezzlement inquiry was still ongoing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teodor Rygier</span> Polish sculptor (1841–1913)

Teodor Rygier was a Polish sculptor known especially for his Adam Mickiewicz Monument (1898) in Kraków, Poland. He was selected in the major competition by popular demand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jašiūnai</span> Town in Dzūkija, Lithuania

Jašiūnai is a town in Lithuania. It is situated on the Merkys River and an edge of the Rūdninkai Forest. According to the 2001 census, it had population of 1,879. The town's population is primarily Poles (74.5%), with Lithuanians (12.4%) and Russians (8.4%).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henryk Kuna</span> Polish sculptor

Henryk Kuna was a Polish sculptor, active in the early twentieth century. His long career produced many famous works of arts including several renowned public monuments in his native country of Poland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dominican Church of the Holy Spirit</span>

Dominican Church of the Holy Spirit, Vilnius is a church in Vilnius, Lithuania, a monument of high and late Baroque. Crowned with a cupola, it stands out in the panorama of the old town and can be seen from surrounding streets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam Mickiewicz Avenue, Bydgoszcz</span> Street in Bydgoszcz, Poland

Adam Mickiewicz Alley is one of the main streets of downtown district in Bydgoszcz, where several buildings are registered on the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship Heritage List.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jan Kochanowski Park, Bydgoszcz</span> Urban park, 20th century, Bydgoszcz, Poland

Jan Kochanowski Park is a green area covering 3,15 ha, located in downtown Bydgoszcz, Poland. It is part of the "Music district in Bydgoszcz" and is named after the Polish renaissance poet, Jan Kochanowski.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bolesław Rusiecki</span>

Bolesław Michał Rusiecki (Lithuanian: Boleslovas Mykolas Ruseckas; was a Polish-Lithuanian painter and art collector.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Lameński, Lechosław (2007). Stach z Warty Szukalski i Szczep Rogate Serce. Lublin: Wydawnictwo KUL. ISBN   978-83-7363-554-8. OCLC   176888498.

54°40′58.12″N25°17′35.96″E / 54.6828111°N 25.2933222°E / 54.6828111; 25.2933222

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.