Wystawy Związku Plastyków Pomorskich i Grupy Plastyków Pomorskich w Muzeum Miejskim w Bydgoszczy w latach 1930–1936

Abstract

The displays of particular artistic associations in the Municipal Museum in Bydgoszcz between 1930 and 1936 are being discussed. The history of Pomeranian artistic associations is not a well-known subject, and no dedicated monographs have been written to date. It appears commonly in the history of the regional chapter of the Polish Association of Visual Artists (Związek Polskich Artystów Plastyków) located in Bydgoszcz. The basic sources include the Archive of the Leon Wyczółkowski District Museum in Bydgoszcz and information contained in Polish press of the period in question. There were two main goals to be achieved for the Pomeranian artists: while aspiring to equal the art represented by more important artistic centres of the country, to show a close connection with their own region and its Polish heritage. During the interwar period, a number of artistic organisations appeared in Bydgoszcz. The most significant were the local branch of the Society for the Encouragement of the Fine Arts (Towarzystwo Zachęty Sztuk Pięknych), established in September 1921, and the Artistic and Cultural Council (Rada Artystyczno-Kulturalna), founded in December 1934. The first exhibition of the Pomeranian Association of Visual Artists (Związek Plastyków Pomorskich) was opened in December 1930 as a summary of the Association’s achievements of that year. It comprised 92 works by 15 artists. Subsequent exhibitions in December 1931 and December 1932 served a similar purpose. The turning point in the history of Pomeranian artistic associations took place in 1933 when – as a result of an internal conflict – the Group of Pomeranian Visual Artists (Grupa Plastyków Pomorskich) was formed. The Group quickly became the leading artistic force of the region, with their first exhibition opening in December 1933. The 4th annual exhibition of the Group of Pomeranian Visual Artists took place in December 1934, simultaneously with the founding of the Artistic and Cultural Council (Rada Artystyczno-Kulturalna) in Bydgoszcz. The Council coordinated, implemented, and documented artistic movements in specially dedicated sections for literature, music, visual arts and radio, quickly becoming an intermediary between artists and their audience. Tanks to their efforts, the first Salon Bydgoski exhibition was organised in 1936. That very year the Group of Pomeranian Visual Artists changed their name to the Group of Visual Artists of Bydgoszcz. Both organizations lacked a well-defined artistic programme, whereas their members were mainly connected for non-artistic motivations, such as the possibility to exhibit their works in well-known institutions or prestige. All of the discussed displays were widely covered in the local press, especially by Henryk Kuminek and Marian Turwid, two leading art critics of the region.