With the fall of communism Polish culture and society began a process of profound transformation, marked by the return of democracy and redevelopment of civil society. After 1989, the heavy government controls ended, and the radical economic changes were introduced. The influx of new aesthetic and social ideas was accompanied by the Western market forces. However, unlike any other temporal marker in the development of Polish culture from the past, the year 1989 did not introduce any specific literary events or artistic manifestations. For a generation of accomplished writers the objectives and their moral quests remained the same as in the preceding period. The first decade of freedom brought mainly state reforms in the financing of cultural institutions and patronage; forcing self-sustainability in an often uncharted territory. Literature, film, visual arts, theater and mass media remained focused on their active participation in public life.[1][2][3]
The events that shaped Polish culture at the onset of the post-communist period began in 1976. The suppressed demonstrations of 1976 gave rise to underground publishing on an unprecedented scale. It was the true beginning of a new literary knowledge in Poland.[1] Between 1976 and 1989, the so-called Drugi obieg (the Second circulation, term commonly applied to Poland's illegal press during the military Coup d'état), published the staggering 5,000 regular newsletters and full-size periodicals including some 7,000 books.[4]
The 1978 papal election of Pope John Paul II has had an equally profound impact on the society. Two years later, the blacklisted Czesław Miłosz was awarded the Nobel Prize in literature,[5] and the Solidarity movement was born following a wave of mass strikes against totalitarianism, poverty, and austerity measures. Almost every Polish artist and writer took part in the movement, and – in one form or another – suffered the consequences of the military crackdown of December 1981.[1][6] After that – as in the films of Krzysztof Kieślowski (No End, 1985; Dekalog, 1989) – the merely physical existence was no longer bearable.[7] Meanwhile, the underground press flourished, supported financially through generous donations from the West,[4] and the inquiries into the nature of law and morality continued. Russia did not intervene in the matter, when their former satellite state was legally dissolved in 1990.[8]
The period 1976–89 provided the necessary intellectual and aesthetic base on which the Polish postmodernism was founded in the arts and literature,[9] partly inspired by the widely popular works of Witkacy, Witold Gombrowicz and Karol Irzykowski.[10] The transitions which began in the 1990s continued throughout the early 21st century.[1]
The Polish avant-garde theatre is world-famous, with Jerzy Grotowski as its most innovative and creative representative. One of the most original twentieth-century theatre personalities was Tadeusz Kantor, painter, theoretician of drama, stage designer, and playwright, his ideas finding their culmination in the theatre of death and his most recognised production being "Umarła klasa" (Dead Class).
Poland has always been a very open country to new music genres and even before the fall of the communism, music styles like rock, metal, jazz, electronic, polka and new wave were well-known. Since 1989, the Polish scene has exploded with new talents and a more diverse style. Contrary to most European countries, pop music is not dominant in Poland.
Every year, a huge gathering of young Poles meet to celebrate the rock and alternative music in Jarocin or Żary. These events often attract more than 250,000 people and are comparable to the gatherings in Woodstock and Roskilde.
In jazz music, Polish musicians created a specific style, which was most famous in 60s and 70s. Most famous Polish jazz artists are: Krzysztof Komeda, Adam Makowicz, Tomasz Stańko, Michał Urbaniak. Two contemporary big Polish music festivals are Opole Festival and Sopot Festival. Poland has a very active underground extreme metal music scene. Some of the bands that have heralded and helped the cause are Vader, Behemoth, Decapitated, Graveland, and Dissenter. This has paved ground for a large underground movement. One of the biggest record labels of death metal in Poland is Empire Records.
Museums and festivals
Poland offers a wide spectrum of cultural experience. Those interested in high culture will enjoy the renowned music festivals like Wratislavia Cantans and the Warsaw Autumn. Polish museums exhibit remarkable art collections - masterpieces including Leonardo da Vinci's Lady with an Ermine at the Czartoryski Museum in Kraków; the Veit Stoss High Altar in St. Mary's Basilica, Kraków; and the Last Judgement by Hans Memling (The National Museum in Gdańsk). Ethnographic museums and open-air sightseeing museums also hold attractive collections. The panorama of Polish culture is completed by a medley of local festivals
Many sports are popular in Poland. Football (soccer) is the country's most popular sport, with a rich history of international competition. Track & field, basketball, boxing, fencing, handball, ice hockey, swimming, volleyball, and weightlifting are other popular sports. The first Polish Formula One driver, Robert Kubica, has brought awareness of Formula One Racing to Poland. Poland has made a distinctive mark in motorcycle speedway racing thanks to Tomasz Gollob, a highly successful Polish rider. The Polish mountains are an ideal venue for hiking, skiing and mountain biking and attract millions of tourists every year from all over the world. Baltic beaches and resorts are popular locations for fishing, canoeing, kayaking and a broad-range of other water-themed sports.
1 2 3 4 Wlodzimierz Bolecki (2004). 1989 in Poland: Continuity and Caesura(Google book preview). History of the Literary Cultures of East-Central Europe by Marcel Cornis-Pope and John Neubauer. John Benjamins Publishing. pp.51–54. ISBN9027234523. Retrieved March 16, 2013.
↑ Prof. Justyna Beinek. "Post-Communist Polish Culture (1989-Present)"(PDF file, direct download 66 KB). Topics in Polish Literature and Culture (Slav-P365/565). Indiana University. Retrieved March 16, 2013.
↑ Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2008–2011). "Visual Arts". Experience Poland» Culture» Visual Arts (in Polish). Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland. Retrieved March 16, 2013.
1 2 Alicja Wancerz-Gluza (July 26, 2005). "Wolność w podziemiu". Solidarność. Ośrodek KARTA, Warsaw. Archived from the original(DOC direct download) on August 7, 2013. Retrieved March 18, 2013.
↑ Richard Ned Lebow; Wulf Kansteiner; Claudio Fogu (Aug 30, 2006). 1980–1989: Unraveling and Tearing(Google book preview). The Politics of Memory in Postwar Europe. Duke University Press. pp.191–. ISBN0822388332. Retrieved March 20, 2013.
↑ J.A.A. Purves (May 22, 2012). "The Decalogue by Krzysztof Kieślowski (1989) - film review". Redemptio Sehnsucht. Retrieved March 18, 2013. There is a ... deeper meaning to be found in our human lives... Attempting to place that meaning where it cannot be found will only lead to utter despair. This is why Kieślowski's The Decalogue is so special.
↑ Eugeniusz Górski (Feb 13, 2009). "From 'Socialist' to Postmodern Pluralism in Poland". Civil Society, Pluralism, and Universalism. Archived from the original on April 13, 2011. Retrieved March 18, 2013– via The Council for Research in Values and Philosophy (RVP).
↑ Halina Janaszek-Ivaničková (1997). Postmodernism in Poland. International Postmodernism: Theory and Literary Practice. John Benjamins Publishing. pp.423–427. ISBN9027234450. Retrieved March 18, 2013.
↑ Beata Zatorska and Simon Target, Recipes and Stories from a Summer in Poland, published by Tabula Books, 2011.
In common with other European countries, the most frequent and most popular form of theatre in Poland is dramatic theatre, based on the existence of relatively stable artistic companies. It is above all a theatre of directors, who decide on the form of its productions and the appearance of individual scenes. There is no strict division in Poland between theatre and film directors and actors, therefore many stage artists are known to theatre goers from films of Andrzej Wajda, for example: Wojciech Pszoniak, Daniel Olbrychski, Krystyna Janda, Jerzy Radziwiłowicz, and from films of Krzysztof Kieślowski, actors such as Jerzy Stuhr, Janusz Gajos and others.
Krzysztof Kieślowski was a Polish film director and screenwriter. He is known internationally for Dekalog (1989), The Double Life of Veronique (1991), and the Three Colours trilogy (1993 –1994). Kieślowski received numerous awards during his career, including the Cannes Film Festival Jury Prize (1988), FIPRESCI Prize, and Prize of the Ecumenical Jury (1991); the Venice Film Festival FIPRESCI Prize (1989), Golden Lion (1993), and OCIC Award (1993); and the Berlin International Film Festival Silver Bear (1994). In 1995, he received Academy Award nominations for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay.
Powązki Cemetery, also known as Stare Powązki, is a historic necropolis located in Wola district, in the western part of Warsaw, Poland. It is the most famous cemetery in the city and one of the oldest, having been established in 1790. It is the burial place of many illustrious individuals from Polish history. Some are interred along the "Avenue of the Distinguished" - Aleja Zasłużonych, created in 1925. It is estimated that over 1 million people are buried at Powązki.
The culture of Poland is the product of its geography and distinct historical evolution, which is closely connected to an intricate thousand-year history. Polish culture forms an important part of western civilization and the western world, with significant contributions to art, music, philosophy, mathematics, science, politics and literature.
Warsaw Autumn(Warszawska Jesień) is the largest international Polish festival of contemporary music. Indeed, for many years, it was the only festival of its type in Central and Eastern Europe. It was founded in 1956 by two composers, Tadeusz Baird and Kazimierz Serocki, and officially established by the Head Board of the Polish Composers' Union. It is an annual event, normally taking place in the second half of September and lasts for 8 days.
The Leon Schiller National Film School is a Polish academy for future actors, directors, photographers, camera operators and television staff. It was founded on 8 March 1948 in Łódź (Lodz).
The Silesian String Quartet is a string quartet founded in 1978 by the graduates of the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice, Poland. Its current members are:
The Warsaw National Philharmonic Orchestra is a Polish orchestra based in Warsaw. Founded in 1901, it is one of Poland's oldest musical institutions.
Antoni Wit is a Polish conductor, composer, lawyer and professor at the Fryderyk Chopin University of Music. Between 2002 and 2013, he served as the artistic director of the National Philharmonic in Warsaw.
The Academy of Music in Kraków is a conservatory located in central Kraków, Poland. It is the alma mater of the renowned Polish contemporary composer Krzysztof Penderecki, who was also its Rector for 15 years. The Academy is the only one in Poland to have two winners of the International Chopin Competition in Warsaw as well as a few further prize-winners among its alumni.
The Chopin University of Music is a musical conservatorium and academy located in central Warsaw, Poland. It is the oldest and largest music school in Poland, and one of the largest in Europe.
Bill Johnston is a prolific Polish language literary translator and Professor of comparative literature at Indiana University. His work has helped to expose English-speaking readers to classic and contemporary Polish poetry and fiction. In 2008 he received the Found in Translation Award for his translation of new poems by Tadeusz Różewicz; this book was also a finalist for the National Books Critics Circle Poetry Award.
The Gdynia Film Festival is an annual film festival first held in Gdańsk, now held in Gdynia, Poland.
Polish postmodernism refers to the cultural, artistic and philosophical development within the Polish society coinciding with the downfall of communism and the democratic transitions leading to Poland's 2004 accession into the European Union.
The Polish School is the music of several post-1945 Polish composers who share generational and stylistic similarities. Representatives include Tadeusz Baird, Henryk Górecki, Wojciech Kilar, Witold Lutosławski, Krzysztof Penderecki, Grażyna Bacewicz, and Kazimierz Serocki. According to Polish music scholar Adrian Thomas, Zygmunt Mycielski used the term at the Łagów conference in 1949, and it was later used at the 1956 Warsaw Autumn festival. Their common purpose was in part retrospective, reacting to socialist realism, and in part speculative. Sound mass and sonorism influenced these post-war composers.
The Ignacy Jan Paderewski Pomeranian Philharmonic has been at its present site in Bydgoszcz, Poland, since 16 November 1953. The Pomeranian Philharmonic is the musical center of Kujawy-Pomerania Province and also features an outdoor art gallery. It is registered on the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship Heritage List.
Christophe Jezewski, in Polish Krzysztof Andrzej Jeżewski is a poet, musicologist, essayist and translator of Polish descent who has been living in France since 1970.
Wojciech Karpiński was a Polish writer, historian of ideas and literary critic.
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