About the Project

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About the Project

Theatre Memory. 
Polish Theatre Photography from the Beginning until the Present
1839–2024

The Zbigniew Raszewski Theatre Institute

The Theatre Memory is the first retrospective to present the history of Polish theatre in the context of the emergence and development of the photographic medium.

The only attempt to present a comprehensive view of theatre photography occurred in 1959, during a two-day session (14-16 September) of the Council of the International Federation of Librarians’ Unions (Section of Theatre Librarians and Archivists). In the conference room of the State Art Institute in Warsaw, an exhibition ‘Polish Theatre Photography 1840-1959’ was organised in cooperation with the Theatre Museum, highlighting its documentary value.

Since 2015, the Theatre Institute in Warsaw has organised the Theatre Photography Competition, which also emphasises the artistic value of the art of theatre photography as a tool for co-constructing the meanings and reception of a theatrical work. Successive editions of the competition have offered many reflections on the state of theatre photography, its authors, but also the theatre they immortalise. They have also raised questions about past experiences, tradition and memory. In 2024, through the virtual exhibition Theatre Memory, we will ask ourselves and the public what and how Polish theatre photography has remembered.


 

  • Instytut Teatralny

    Curator of Part 1: Dr Agnieszka Wanicka
    Curator of Part 2: Wojciech Nowicki in collaboration with Bartosz Flak
    Curator of Part 3: Magdalena Hueckel in collaboration with Magdalena Ożarowska

    Coordination and production:

    Joanna Biernacka-Płoska
    Magdalena Ożarowska

    Editing and proofreading of curatorial texts:

    Joanna Targoń

    Translation:

    Magdalena Szwedowska

    Alternative texts:

    Ola Bratkowska 

    Website:
    Rytm.Digital
    Paweł Brzeziński (UX/UI, digital design)
    Roman Kühl (web development)
    Agata Kühl (project manager)

    Special thanks to:

    Adam and Ewa Bujak, Joanna Chodkowska, Krystyna Hermanowicz-Nowak, Agnieszka Leśniak, Katarzyna Mączewska, Małgorzata Piekutowa, Maria Staniszewska, Katarzyna Wodarska-Ogidel, as well as the Białystok Puppet Theatre, the Jagiellonian Library, the Public Library of the City of Warsaw, the Jerzy Grotowski Institute in Wrocław, the Białystok Puppet Theatre, the Jagiellonian Library, the Public Library of the City of Warsaw, the Institute of the City of Warsaw, the Białystok Puppet Theatre and the Bialystok Puppet Theatre. The exhibition is supported by the following institutions: the Jagiellonian Library, the Jagiellonian Library, the Public Library of the Capital City of Warsaw, the Jerzy Grotowski Institute in Wrocław, the Dream Adoption Society, the Archeology of Photography Foundation, the Mazovian Institute of Culture, the Museum of Photography in Kraków, the Museum of the History of the City of Kraków, the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw, the Tatra Museum in Zakopane, the Museum of Warsaw, the Helena Modrzejewska National Stary Theatre in Kraków, the Lalka Theatre in Warsaw, the Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz Studio Theatre in Warsaw, and the Maria and Edmund Wierciński Contemporary Theatre in Wrocław.

  • The theatre occupies a special place in Polish culture. Established in 1765, the public theatre established its strong social position during the Partitions of Poland, when it was one of the few places where the Polish language was alive.

    The retrospective exhibition Theatre Memory explores the history of theatre photography in Poland from its beginnings to the present day, tracing technological, artistic, and social changes and their impact on theatre photography.

    The curatorial team selected four hundred works in cooperation with numerous institutions and individuals. The selected photographs—many on public display for the first time and arranged side by side—treat us to a unique history of Polish theatre and Polish photography. We hope they will also inspire you to find your answer to the question of how photography remembers the theatre.