POLAND
Area: 312 683 km² - Population: 38.19 million - Capital: Warsaw
Official Language: Polish - Date of joining the EU: 2004
A few indications
Literature. Numerous Polish writers are translated worldwide: Henryk Sienkiewicz, Nobel prize in 1905, Wladyslaw Reymont, Nobel prize in 1924, Stanislaw Ignacy Witkiewicz, precursor of the theatre of the absurd, Bruno Schulz, whose stories lead the reader into fantastic universes. Among contemporaries, Witold Grombrowicz, who fights in his novels and his theatre against all kinds of stereotypes, Slawomir Mrozek, the author of a derisive theatre, or else Czeslaw Milosz, who won the Nobel prize in 1980, and Wislawa Szymborska, Nobel prize in 1996. Isaac Bashevis Singer, Nobel prize in 1978, who emigrated while still young to the United States, left us a colorful body of work forcefully rendering the universe of the Yiddish world, now gone.
Cinema. The Polish cinema also has an important position on the world stage, with such authors as Andrzej Wajda, Roman Polanski or Krzysztof Kieslowski (author of the famous series inspired by the Ten Commandments, the Decalogue).
Theatre. Jerzy Grotowski, Tadeusz Kantor, Krystian Lupa, and the younger ones – Krzysztof Warlikowski, Grzegorz Jarzyna, Jan Klata.
Visual Arts. The classics: Roman Opalka, Katarzyna Kobro, Alina Szapocznikow, Wladyslaw Strzeminski, Edward Krasinski, and younger ones – Artur Zmijewski, Piotr Uklanski, Katarzyna Kozyra, Wilhelm Sasnal, Dominik Lejman.
Music. From Chopin, and including Karol Szymanowski, Witold Lutoslawski, and winding up with Krzysztof Penderecki or Pawel Mykietyn.
Organization of cultural policies
Formulation of the objectives of cultural policy and of the financing principles is mainly up to the Polish national administration. The State continues to finance the national cultural institutions. The national theatre, the national opera, the State art gallery called « Zacheta », the Center of contemporary arts, the Royal Castle of Warsaw and the Royal Castle of Wawel are a few examples of national institutions that are of crucial importance to development of Polish culture.
Recently, the local authorities have played a major role in cultural policy.
The Ministry of Culture is a governmental organ responsible for the legislation, for definition of the country’s cultural policy, and for supervising its implementation, as well as for observing current changes and for the search for new solutions when it comes to financing sources for the cultural sector.
The other bodies responsible for cultural policy are the “Culture” and “Media” Committees of the Sejm and of the Senate (the two houses of Parlament). These Committees work, in particular, on development of artistic creation, promotion of culture, protection of the cultural heritage, development of the media sector and cultural cooperation with other countries...
Events connected with the country
Franco-Polish Tandem
19 December, in Aix-en-Provence, Grand théâtre de Provence (to be confirmed)
22 December, in Paris, Théâtre du Châtelet
Concert
Sinfonia Varsovia
Directed by: Marc Minkowski
Program: Moniuszko Halka, Olivier Greif, Emmanuel Chabrier, Alexandre Glazounov.
And also...
27 June-7 July at La Rochelle, La Rochelle Film Festival
Cinema
Homage to Walerian Borowczyk (1923-2006)
A selection of short films (animations and collages, produced with Jan Lenica: Once upon a time, Feelings Rewarded, The Standard of Youth…) and feature-length films (Goto-Island of Love, White, History of a Sin) to discover a multi-talented artist. In collaboration with the Polish Institute of Paris.
22 July in Nice, Nice Jazz Festival (Scène Matisse)
Concert
Concert by the Wasilewski/Kurkiewicz/Miskiewicz trio
23 September-26 October in Paris, Maison européenne de la photographie
Exposition
Roman Cieslewicz
Exhibition of Roman Cieslewicz’s work, whose talent can be seen in many different fields: posters, illustration, press layouts, advertising-publishing and exhibition catalogues, entertaining collages…
1-7 October in Paris, Reflet Médicis, and in Lyon, Cinemas CNP
Cinema
Polish cinema week
Discovery and rediscovery of the Polish cinema by way of 14 films, from yesterday to today: 7 great classics and 7 contemporary films not released in France. Showings and round-table discussions in the presence of the directors and of cinema historians.
24-25 October in Paris, Bibliothèque polonaise (Polish Library)
Colloquium
Poland, Russia and Europe
An international colloquium organized by the Polish Historical and Literary Society, with participation, among others, by Hélène Carrère d’Encausse, Bronislaw Geremek, Jean-Bernard Raimond and Hubert Védrine.
For more information :
Polish Institue
31 rue Goujon - 75008 Paris
Tel. : 01 53 93 90 10
http://www.institut.pologne.net
secretariat@institut.pologne.net
- Updated: 17.07.2008
