Experience a unique opportunity to explore the little known art movement of Young Poland with one of the leading scholars in the field, Julia Griffin, with privileged access to several sites
Gain an understanding of the rich decorative traditions and material culture of Young Poland across visits in Zakopane and Krakow
Explore private houses including the Silent Villa, as well as the newly opened Wyspiański Museum and the famous Stained Glass Workshop and Museum
“This volume makes a significant contribution to a growing body of literature that places the Arts & Crafts movement in a global context… [it] is a beautiful book and a scholarly triumph” (Useful & Beautiful, summer 2021)
- Review of 'Young Poland: The Polish Arts & Crafts Movement 1890-1918' (co-edited by Julia Griffin)
Young Poland (1890-1918) is one of the most wide-ranging and original movements within Polish art; characterised by the integration of fine and decorative arts, and a revival of handicrafts, Young Poland was part of the international Arts & Crafts movement that originated with William Morris, John Ruskin and the Pre-Raphaelites.
Following a well-received recent exhibition at the William Morris Gallery in London and an acclaimed accompanying publication showcasing this hitherto little known artistic movement, ACE is delighted to present a brand new tour exploring the key artists, ideas, objects, museums and houses which collectively make up the landscape of the Polish Arts & Crafts.
Young Poland emerged as an expression of the Polish people’s yearning for political independence and a means of preserving their cultural identity; artists and designers created a new visual language inspired by their country’s history, nature and landscape, as well as vernacular craft and architectural traditions. Our tour will explore these themes as we visit the key localities of Zakopane and Krakow.
In Zakopane, the Tatra Museum holds the most comprehensive collection of costumes and objects belonging to the Highlander shepherds, whose houses, carvings and embroideries were a major source of inspiration for Stanisław Witkiewicz’s Zakopane Style in architecture and interior decoration, admired by John Ruskin. We will visit Witkiewicz’s first major architectural commission, Villa Koliba, and his magnum opus, the House under the Firs.
The privately owned Silent Villa was home to Karol Kłosowski’s studio and conceived as a ‘Total Work of Art’. We will also see examples of Zakopane Style ecclesiastical buildings.
In Krakow, our tour explores the role of innovative history painter and pioneering designer Jan Matejko, whose decorative scheme at St Mary’s Basilica is considered Poland’s first Arts & Crafts project, as well as reformer Stanisław Wyspiański, William Morris’s closest counterpart. The newly opened Wyspiański Museum gives an overview of his work in the applied arts as well as the literary world, whilst ecclesiastical and civic buildings offer the opportunity to see the artist’s decorative schemes in situ.
At the Franciscan Church, Wyspiański juxtaposed giant floral patterns of pansies, nasturtiums and wild roses with dynastic heraldic eagles, combining indigenous plants and historical relics to convey the spirit of non-extant Poland. Meanwhile, at the Medical Society, he evoked the unity of art and science through stained glass.
Another designer at the forefront of the Young Poland movement was Józef Mehoffer, whose former home we hope to visit, alongside his decorative scheme at the House under the Globe. A visit to an archetypal Polish manor house in the village of Goszyce offers an opportunity to explore the art of illustrator and poet Maria Pawlikowska-Jasnorzewska and society portraitist Aniela Pawlikowska, both of whom emigrated to Great Britain during the Second World War.
Our tour finishes with a visit to the Czartoryski Museum, showcasing Polish heritage and home to a world-class collection of Polish and international fine and decorative arts, including Leonardo da Vinci’s Lady with an Ermine, and a tour of Wawel Castle, for centuries the residence of the Polish kings, and the nearby cathedral.
We hope to include several privileged visits as well as special opportunities to meet museum staff and private owners throughout our tour (subject to availability; to be confirmed closer to the departure). Our excursions will be complemented by a series of expert lectures given by our Tour Director, to set our explorations in context.
Accommodation for the first three nights of our tour will be at the five-star Aries Hotel & Spa in Zakopane, an elegant property in a central location just minutes from the Tatra Museum. The rest of the tour will be spent at the four-star Hotel H15 Francuski, a charming property built during the Young Poland period and conveniently located in a quiet part of Krakow’s Old Town.
This too will be led by art historian and curator Julia Griffin, MA, PhD, a specialist in 19th and 20th century British and Polish art, design and cultural history. As Young Poland Project Curator at the William Morris Gallery, Julia co-curated the world’s first exhibition on the movement in the context of the International Arts & Crafts, and was joint winner of the Association for Art History's 2022 Curatorial Award for best UK exhibition. She also co-edited the publication Young Poland: The Polish Arts & Crafts Movement 1890-1918 (Lund Humphries, 2020, shortlisted for the 2022 Alfred H Barr Jr Award, CAA). Julia has studied art and cultural history at the Courtauld Institute of Art, Central Saint Martins and the University of the Arts London. Her PhD explored Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Morris and Kelmscott Manor, and she was awarded the Freedom of the City of London in recognition of her services as Principal Curator of the Guildhall Art Gallery (2015). Julia is a contributor to numerous publications on British and Polish art and has also worked at the Society of Antiquaries of London and the Watts Gallery.
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