Hogarth and His Century
27.04.2001 - 24.06.2001
Jointly organised by the International Cultural Centre and the Print Room of the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Polish Academy of Sciences Library, the exposition was another in a series of exhibitions devoted to presentation of the prints by the old masters. The aim of this project has been to exhibit the masterpieces remaining in the rich collection of the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences. The exhibition focused on the oeuvre of William Hogarth, one of the finest artists of the 18th century. Among others, it featured Hogarth’s famous morality series – “A Harlot’s Progress”, “Marriage à la Mode”, “The Rake’s Progress” – as well as works by other artists of the period such as Piranesi, Canaletto, Chodowiecki and Boucher. A significant part of the exhibition comprised the prints of the English-based masters in which one could trace a development of this particular discipline of art in the discussed period. The exhibition boasting over a hundred works of art offered an overview of the 18th century prints, their modifications as well as prevailing style tendencies.
Selected works available at the exhibition - part 1
Selected works available at the exhibition - part 2
Karolina Grodziska
Doctor of historical sciences, director of the Scientific Library of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the Polish Academy of Sciences and Arts, and editor-in-chief of its yearly magazine. A researcher of Polish burial places in Poland and abroad (beneficiary of several M.B. Grabowski Scholarships). In 2004 she received the Krakow Municipality Award for works on the history of Krakow cemeteries. Author of more than 300 academic works and essays, currently working on the third volume of Polskie groby na cmentarzach Londynu.
Prints Room of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences
The Print Room in the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Polish Academy of Sciences Library – one of the most valuable collection of prints in Poland whose history goes back to the 19th century. It originates in the works from the Polish Library in Paris as well as a collection by the Moszyński family. Among the collection’s highlights, one finds the prints by such celebrated artists as Martin Schongauer, Albrecht Dürer, Rembrandt van Rijn. Until today, eight exhibitions have been organised by the International Cultural Centre in cooperation with the Print Room in the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Polish Academy of Sciences Library – a testament to the years-long cooperation between the two institution. To quote from the Director of the International Cultural Centre, Prof. Jacek Purchla, the exhibitions’ aim has been “to evoke the memory of one of the most valuable collections of European art in Poland; the collection which is an important part of our national heritage. By displaying the works in the International Cultural Centre Gallery, we bring them back to our collective memory. For years, the collection localised in the heart of Krakow remained practically unknown. Due to our exhibition efforts it has finally claimed it rightful place and is widely recognised nowadays”.
Hogarth and His Century
Collective work
The catalogue presents masterpieces of 18th?century European printmaking from the Print Room in the Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Polish Academyof Sciences Library in Krakow. In the collection of over 100 black?and?white and colour engravings the most numerous group consists of copperplates by the outstanding English painter and engraver W. Hogarth. The assemblage also includes striking copperplates by Sir R. Strange and W. Woollett, virtuoso mezzotints by V. Green, J. R. Smith and R. Earlom, and engravings by R. Bartolozzi executed in the drypoint technique which was very popular in Great Britain in the second half of the 18th century. A selection of French rococo graphics and copperplates from J. P. Lembas's printing shop, and N. de Launay and J. M. Moreau's prints can be found in the album as well. New techniques of European printmaking are exemplified by works of J. Ch. Francois (coloured pencil), J.?B. Le Prince (“washing” techniques, aquatint), and J.S. Janinet and Ch. M. Descourtis (coloured etchings, colour one? and multi?plate prints). The review is complete with unique etchings of masters of the genre including G. B. Piranesi, S. Boucher, B. Bellotto, and D. Chodowiecki. The catalogue also comprises essays by such experts as L. Kalinowski, M. Pokorska-Primus and K. Krużel.