The Viennese Contacts of “Sztuka” – from the "Proceedings of the Society of Polish Artists"

Abstract

The Society of Polish Artists “Sztuka” was doubly elitist: it presented carefully selected works by the artists of choice that is almost exclusively by the members of the association. This important group, as far as the Polish culture is concerned, first revolutionized the artistic life at home (1897–1918) but then started to fade (until the 1950s). There exist no monographs regarding the association, therefore, the analysis of The Proceedings of the Society of Polish Artists “Sztuka” (Protokoły Posiedzeń TAP „Sztuka”, 1897–1912) provides insight into the less known aspects of the Society’s functioning. Of interest are undoubtedly the contacts with the Secession and Hagenbund regarding the organization of exhibitions (also with the Czech Mánes). The process of gaining funding for exhibitions shows the establishment of a model of state financing, which sometimes involved the loss of artists’ artistic freedom (it was part of the cultural policy of the Austro-Hungarian Empire that balanced the national issues). The members of the Society of Polish Artists needed to face the following questions: who has the right to represent Polish artists from all partitions? What should the work of the jury look like so that the dominance of one artistic trend is avoided (especially the esthetic concepts of J. Stanisławski)? The article reconstructs differences in the rules governing the cooperation between the Society of Polish Artists and the Wiener Secession and Hagenbund (that housed the biggest Polish exhibition before 1918, completely forgotten today). An important aspect of the article is the discussion of the internal conflicts that threatened the existence of the Society of Polish Artists. In the conclusion, the article indicates the directions of cooperation of Polish artists with Kunstlerbund Hagen in the years 1918–1938.