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VOL. 18

VOL. 18

Piotr Pajor PhD (ORCID iD), Pontifical University of John Paul II, Institute of History of Art and Culture, ul. Sławkowska 32, 31–014 Kraków

(DOI)

Summary

Several remarks on the circumstances of the construction and architectural form of the Order of St. Clare church in Stary Sącz

The article presents an attempt at a new look at the architectural form of the Poor Clares church in Stary Sącz. In the literature so far, this building was most often considered as an example of the impact of Austrian architecture on Lesser Poland, both at the level of the spatial arrangement and style. However, some similarities were also pointed to the solutions used in the Krakow cathedral. Dating raised more doubts, the more so as written sources are not explicit. The construction of the church was mentioned in the 1880s, shortly after the monastery was founded by Saint Kinga, however, the consecration took place only in the year 1332. So many researchers believed that the current building was at least partly built in the thirteenth century, later it was only enlarged. An even later addition would be the vault of the western part of the body, above which there is a religious gallery.

However, the analysis of the forms of the entire church leads to the conclusion that it is, apart from modern transformations, a homogeneous building and probably created during one building operation before 1332. The most important conclusions, however, can be formulated on the basis of traceries, in which a specific motif of the spherical triangle with in the first quarter of the fourteenth century outside France, it was commonly found only in the Rhineland, especially in the area around Lake Constance. Similar motifs are also present in the Krakow cathedral; in both buildings very similar brackets and pear-shaped ribs were used. Therefore, when considering the church of Poor Clares in Stary Sącz, one should return to the thesis about the workshop connection of this building with the cathedral in Krakow, whose creators also come from Upper Rhineland. In addition, it seems that the building of this class could not have been built without the support of Władysław Łokietek and Queen Jadwiga, who had strong relationships with the Nowy Sącz monastery.

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Stefaniia Demchuk PhD (ORCID iD), Chair of Art History, Faculty of History Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Volodymyrska str. 60, office 424, Kyiv – 01033

(DOI)

Two Suppers: Illustrations by Jacob Cornelisz. van Oostsanen to Passio Domini Nostri Jesu Christi (1523) and the Eucharistic Controversy of the Early Reformation

This paper looks at two engraving by Jacob Cornelisz. Van Oostsanen made for a prayer book entitled “Passio Domini Nostri Jesu Christi”, published in 1523. We explore the visual and narrative sources of these two suppers – Passover and Last supper, paired for the first time in a passion book text. How these images were related to the text written by an Amsterdam humanist and fervent Catholic Alardus van Amsterdam? How did the Suppers affect Eucharistic controversy started by reformers and Martin Luther in particular? Which affirmation did the engravings make within the Eucharistic controversy context?

We can conclude that the book “Passio Domini Nostri jesu Christi” edited by Alardus of Amsterdam and published by Doen Pietersz with engravings by Jacob Cornelisz. van Oostsanen can be considered a perfect example of the Counterreformation art created before the Council of Trent.

Nonconventional iconography and deviations in the storyline of the Passion had been employed on purpose. The Amsterdam humanist and artist countered Luther and his followers with a narrative and pictorials, including two suppers: the Passover and Last Supper; deviating from the canonical story line and established iconographic tradition in order to prove validity of the Catholic doctrine on the concept of the Eucharist at a time when it was sparking fiery debates with the reformers.

Therefore, Alardus intended to use the Passover as a proof of the validity of the Eucharist’s interpretation as a sacrifice. Following the God’s ordain the Jews sacrificed a lamb, marked the doors with its blood forcing the death to evade their houses and were eventually saved by following this routine. In order to ensure that salvation never failed they had to repeat this sacrifice on 10th day of each new year. Since the Passover has been always considered to be a direct prototype of the Last Supper and Christ’s sacrifice therefore a mass originating from the Passover had been taking over its features, regularity, and strict ritual and sacrifice (“a good deed”) paving the way for salvation. Whereas the Last Supper was intended to champion the Transubstantiation doctrine.

These methods allowed championing the doctrines branded by Luther as “captivities” of sacrament by finding irrefutable evidence in the Old and New Testaments. The Amsterdam Passion book dated 1523 represent an effort of the intellectual elite of the Northern Netherlands to restrain the spread of the Reformation that nonetheless will eventually succeed in conquering the north much faster than the south. However, “Passio Domini” is an invaluable source for the future researchers of the Reformation Eucharist controversy that took place in 1520s since its narrative and especially the visual background demonstrate the innovative capabilities of the Catholic party manifested at the early stage of a clash with Luther’s teaching.

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Mikołaj Getka-Kenig PhD, (ORCID iD), Jagiellonian University, Institute of Art History, ul. Grodzka 53, 31–001 Kraków

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Summary

Sebastian Sierakowski’s treatise and the problem of disseminating architectural knowledge in the Duchy of Warsaw

This article therefore explores the genesis of the Sierakowski Treaty - the first Polish-language publication of the sum of construction knowledge, comprehensively discussing artistic and technical issues - following the trail of research on the political implications of its publication. Descending to the level of a more detailed and contextual analysis of the content of the treaty, and especially its introductory party, the author of this article argues that the specific political circumstances were not meaningless (and even crucial) for the very fact of the publication of this book at this time , in this and not another place (country), and with this and no other content. Sebastian Sierakowski published his unprecedented Polish-language textbook of architectural knowledge with a view to a specific society at a special historical moment, in which, in his opinion, universal and comprehensive knowledge of classical architectural principles was to be very useful and useful for this society. The "resurrection" of the Polish state in the form of the Duchy of Warsaw, not only boiling down to the restoration of eternal statehood to Poles, but also resulting in a far-reaching reform of pre-partition internal relations, was particularly justified to address the topic of construction reform in the public forum, due to its key importance for quality social life. Even if Architecture covering all genres of masonry and building has not met with wider interest from contemporaries, and its content is not entirely original (from our contemporary point of view, one could even accuse Sierakowski of plagiarism), its publication should be considered an important event in history. Polish architecture thinking not only because of its unprecedented volume and multithreading. With the task of making the elite idiom a universal good, the Sierakowski's treaty had the ambition to adapt the social range of architectural knowledge to the changing realities shaped by the political situation in Napoleonic Poland.

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Agata Wójcik PhD (ORCID iD), Pedagogical University of Cracow, Institute of Painting and Artistic Education, ul. Podchorążych 2, 30–084 Kraków

(DOI)

Summary

"Artistic thought" which permeated "common taverns". Restaurant interiors at the Stary Teatr in Kraków designed by the artists connected with the Polish Applied Arts Society (TPSS) 

In 1906, the Krakow authorities decided to entrust the design of the restaurant interior in the newly renovated Old Theater to artists associated with the Polish Applied Arts Society - Edward Trojanowski, Ludwik Wojtyczka, Eugeniusz Dąbrowa-Dąbrowski, and Józef Czajkowski. Numerous reconstruction of the building, restoration of its theater function, as well as a lack of understanding of applied art of the early 20th century led to their irreversible destruction. This commission allowed artists to show stylistic solutions proposed by the Society. It was not a simple way of inspiration only folk art, but drawing on the broader heritage of Polish artistic craft and combining it with forms heralding 20th-century modernism. The interiors in the Old Theater have become an example that Polish designers are able to create solutions that will not be a copy or even an inspiration of the interiors of Viennese or Parisian cafes, but are able to create their own language of forms. Thanks to this order, the Society was able to engage local craftsmen with whom it had been trying to cooperate from the beginning, and thus wanted to ennoble their work, establish the thread of cooperation between an artist and craftsman and show the audience that relying only on Polish forces, it is possible to implement a high-class project . The interiors discussed and reproduced in the press allowed artists to present their skills, which resulted in subsequent orders for interiors and furniture for public institutions and private apartments. The issues related to applied art, widely discussed at the beginning of the 20th century, even created a degree of fashion for the interior of a cafe or restaurant in the style of "Polish applied art", which sometimes resulted in caricatured effects or brushed with the matter of plagiarizing projects.

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Natasza Styrna PhD (ORCID iD), Pontifical University of John Paul II, Institute of History of Art and Culture, ul. Sławkowska 32, 31–014 Kraków

(DOI)

Summary

From provinces to the metropolis - the case of Sasza Blonder 

Szasza Blonder (1909–1949) was one of the most active and talented members of the pre-war First Kraków Group. Despite that fact, little has been written about his life and work to date, and his truly interesting accomplishments have not been subjected to any in-depth analysis. These two motifs, the work, and life’s destiny, in the case of Blonder are very much intertwined. His drawings and paintings are filled with figures of friends, family members, his home equipment, that he always had at hand, as well as landscapes from his homeland. In each of these cases, the artist betrayed a very emotional attitude towards the subjects that he had been studying. He was an expressionist when portraying people with whom he came into contact, and he followed similar patterns when treating the world around him, the landscapes moving in front of his eyes, the urban scenes appearing in his works, and even the most banal objects surrounding him. At the same time, he was able to keep the distance – for him, all these were primarily nutrients, which he fed his painterly art with, to satisfy the need of expressing himself, to get the excess of observations out if his system. He created with admirable passion. When we look at his drawings, we might say – feverishly, even. In his works, we sense some kind of greed to describe everything that was within the range of his sensitivity – even better, more clearly, trying different means of expression, sometimes reaching for completely different stylistic conventions, in order to discover their potential and choose the most appropriate language of expression. This could also be said to be true about the biography of the artist, which was full of unexpected turns, moments of anxiety and conflict, dilemmas that he tried to cope with – the story of a man who was looking for his place on earth, probably unsuccessfully, tossed between the Podolia province, whence he came, between Paris, Kraków, Warsaw, and other places during his relatively short life.

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professor Andrzej Betlej (ORCID iD), Agata Dworzak PhD (ORCID iD), Jagiellonian University, Institute of Art History, ul. Grodzka 53, 31–001 Kraków

(DOI)

Summary

Professor Jan K. Ostrowski’s seventieth birthday celebration

On April 28, a special ceremony took place in our Institute to celebrate the seventieth birthday of Professor Jan K. Ostrowski, whereupon He was presented with a memorial book "VELIS QUOD POSSIS", dedicated to Him.

It is impossible to list all the distinguished guests gathered in the Karol and Karolina Lanckoroński Hall, enough to say that they included Jacek Miler – Director of the Department of Cultural Heritage Abroad and Wartime Losses at The Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, Andrzej Kulig – Deputy Mayor of Krakow for Social Policy, Culture and City Promotion, His Magnificence Rector of
the Jagiellonian University professor Wojciech Nowak, professor Jerzy Wyrozumski – Secretary General of the Polish Academy of Sciences, professor Franciszek Ziejka – Social Committee for the Restoration of Krakow’s Historic Monuments, professor Jan Święch and professor Stanisław Sroka – Deans of the Faculty of History, and professor Jacek Purchla – Director of the International Cultural Center in Kraków. Representatives of academic centres of art history from all over Poland. 

The culmination point of the ceremony was presenting the Professor with a memorial book dedicated to Him. Monumental Festschrift entitled "Velis quod possis. Studies in art history offered to Professor Jan Ostrowski", edited by Andrzej Betlej, Katarzyna Brzezina-Scheuerer, Agata Dworzak, Marcin Fabiański, Piotr Krasny, Michał Kurzej and Dagny Nestorow, was published by the Societas Vistulana publishing house. This is the expression of the highest recognition on the part of the Polish and international art historians – counting 74 articles related to the main research fields that the Professor had pursued, included in the publication. The latter featured texts by the students of the Professor, by His friends and co-workers, who in this way attempted to express their gratitude to Him for His many years of work, help and inspiration in all their endeavours.

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professor Andrzej Betlej (ORCID iD), Jagiellonian University, Institute of Art History, ul. Grodzka 53, 31–001 Kraków

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Chronicle of the Jagiellonian University Institute of Art History for the year 2017

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Affiliations and contact details (DOI)

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Improving international impact of the “Modus. Art history journal” by translating volumes 18 and 19 into English – task fi nanced under contract no. 606/P-DUN/2018 from the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education grant for the promotion of science.