The Art of Illustration - from the collection of the Bureau for Art Exhibitions - Zamosc Art Gallery
INTRODUCTION
Drawing is the oldest form of human communication. Illustrations were already created in the Stone Age, when people used different forms of paintings and stone engravings to communicate not only emotions but also information - which could be interpreted by the then inhabitants of the Earth. Maybe it was already then that the correspondence between picture and text - written by means of geometrical symbols and mysterious signs, was created. It was particularly clear in the culture of Ancient Egypt, where a pictograph was an illustration per se, and described events shown by means of a painting or a relief.
In narrative art, book illustration plays a special role. It not only ignites imagination but also adds value to the story, and gives us aesthetic experience. Looking for its origin, we usually turn to illuminated medieval manuscripts, whose intricately decorated initials, borders and miniatures, referring to fragments of the text came to be, for many years, the model for the aesthetics of future prints.
The invention of the print contributed to greater accessibility of books, to the development of publishing, and also increased the demand for illustrations. Thanks to mass production, pictures cut in wooden blocks substituted intricately made, colourful miniatures. The 19th century brought a sudden development of graphic techniques. New techniques emerged, such as flat printing or wood engraving, which provided more possibilities of getting colour-valued effects. It also contributed to the development of book and press illustration. The development of reproduction techniques in the 20th century, and especially of the cheap offset technique, created a greater demand for artistic book illustrations. And the popularity of photography dominated press illustration. However, photography did not eliminate artistic illustration, which - not limited by technical possibilities - started to develop dynamically, becoming an almost an independent artistic field.
In this special relationship between the author of the text, the author of the illustration and the reader, the artist, in away imposing his or her own artistic vision of the literary work on the reader, becomes almost an equal partner in the creative process. For many artists it is very tempting, because even though - as far as the interpretation of the literary work is concerned - the artist's artistic freedom in creating his or her composition is limited, the possibility of influencing the reader to such a great extent makes many prominent painters and drawers undertake the task very readily. Polish illustration, which after World War II started its golden era, and since the sos of the 20th centuries almost reached the status of the “national speciality", gaining recognition and winning awards at important international events for example in Milan, Bologne or Tokyo, has a special place in the history of book illustration. The illustrations were then created by: Tadeusz Kulisiewicz, Jan Marcin Szancer, Antoni Uniechowski, Maja Berezowska, Marek Rudnicki, Bronistaw Kurdziel and Jerzy Zaruba.
As an independent art field, original illustration has become the subject of interest for collectors and museums. Museums and galleries have specialised collections of book illustrations. An institution which must be mentioned is the Borderlands Museum in Lubaczow, which has organized the Triennial of Contemporary Drawing since the 60s of the previous century, and which houses a large collection of illustrative drawings. At the Regional and Municipal Public Library in Zielona Gora the Museum of Book Illustration was founded, and the museum has gathered unique artistic projects. Illustrations are also part of the collection of the Museum of Warsaw Printing and the Museums of Artistic Book in Lódź.
The Bureau for Art Exhibitions - Zamosc Art Gallery, which was founded in 2000 after the merge of two cultural institutions: the Bureau for Art Exhibitions and the Gallery of Modern Art, has a special place among the institutions housing collections of contemporary Polish book illustrations. One of the events initiated by the Bureau for Art Exhibitions in 1984 and continued by the Bureau for Art Exhibitions - ZamosécArt Gallery is the Roztocze open-air workshop for illustrators. It is the only cyclic artistic event of this type held in Europe. As a result of the open-air workshops and exhibitions, in which eminent artists creating Polish book illustrations, winners of prizes valued all over the world, co-authors of the “Polish School of Illustration", such as: Olga Siemaszko, Zbigniew Rychlicki, Jozef Wilkon, Janusz Stanny, Zbigniew Witwicki, Jerzy Flisak, Antoni Boratynski, Wiestaw Majchrzak, Elzbieta Gaudasinska-Borowska, Tomasz Borowski, Krystyna Michatowska, Wanda i Bogustaw Orlinscy, Elzbieta i Marian Murawscy, Michat Bylina and many others, have participated, a collection, unique for Poland, was created.
The exceptional character of our Zamosé collection results from the fact that it has always been created under a special motto, during open-air workshops, in a particular place and time, in the atmosphere of meetings and discussions, conferences and lectures presented by the invited guests, who have introduced the theme of the particular artistic workshop. As a result of the workshops, several thematic sets have been created, referring to the creation of famous authors of Polish literature, among others: Adam Mickiewicz ("Pan Tadeusz", “Ballads and Romances"), Henryk Sienkiewicz, Jan Kochanowski, Whladystaw Reymont, Juliusz Stowacki, Bolestaw Lesmian, Stanistaw Wyspianski, Czestaw Mitosz, Jozef Ignacy Kraszewski, Aleksander Fredro and Julian Tuwim. The leading theme of the workshops has not always been a literary one. Many of the workshops have been devoted to historical characters and to, widely understood, cultural and social phenomena, such as “Polish illustration for children", "The Bible in Illustration", "The Kings of Poland", "Kids Room Pictures", "The Human and the Environment", “The Perishing World of Nature", "The Perishing Architecture of Zamosc Region", "The Devilish Archer" (illustrations for fairy tales, legends, and Polish myths gathered and described by Zdzistaw Nowak), “Frederic Chopin - Music and Painting - the Romantic Synthesis of Art", "Jan Zamoyski - the Great Crown Hetman and his Work", "Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales" and Cervantes' Characters".
It must be noted that the result of the open-air workshops for illustrators are exhibitions, presented in various cultural centres in Poland and abroad, and also richly illustrated catalogues accompanying the exhibitions. In this context, special emphasis should be drawn to the re-editions of Polish literary works which are special catalogues of the collections, illustrated by the artists taking part in the workshops and devoted to the leading theme. The one which particularly should be mentioned is: Adam Mickiewicz's "Pan Tadeusz" (published in 1996), with book design by Andrzej Heidrich, the design of the cover and of title pages by Janusz Stanny, and with illustrations by: Julian Bohdanowicz, Antoni Boratynski, Elzbieta Gaudasinska, Artur Gotebiowski, Wojciech Kolyszko, Inez Krupinska, Krystyna Lipka-SztarbaHto, Irena kLakomiec-Kaminska, Franciszek Masluszczak, Aleksandra Michalska- Szwagierczak, Krystyna Michatowska, Leszek Otdak, Wanda Orlinska, Bogustaw Orlinski, Stanistaw Ozoga, Jowita Ploszajska, Anna Sedziwy, Olga Siemaszko, Anna Stylo-Ginter, Waldemar Swierzy, Teresa Wilbik, Jozef Wilkon, Zdzistaw Witwicki and Halina Zakrzewska-Zaleska.
This rich and multi-threaded collection of Polish illustration, historical, because gathered systematically and methodically throughout four decades in the Bureau for Art Exhibitions - Zamosc Art Gallery, now housing over 3400 original works by top artists-illustrators, is the most representative collection in Poland. It continues its development, and the evidence for it is also this exhibition and publication. It presents the most beautiful illustrative works, selected from the Gallery's rich collection. It is not only another exhibition, but also a special manual of the history of Polish illustration of the latest decades, which is rich in experiences of the past, and boldly faces the new challenges presented by the more and more popular virtual reality.
