Artwork Reproductions in Polish Identity Building after World War II

Abstract

Reproductions of artworks were a crucial element of official narratives aimed at shaping Polish identity after World War II. In this article, we explore the strategies employed in constructing visual messages in the first volume of the book series Ziemie Staropolski (Old Poland’s Territories) titled Dolny Śląsk (Lower Silesia), published in 1948 and devoted to the Western territories ceded to Poland after the war. In our case studies, we discuss such aspects as, on the one hand, framing, lighting, viewpoint and selection; on the other, geographical, political and social contexts. We propose two notions to explain the political use of reproductions. The first is geohistorical medium, which we employ in reference to how reproductions actualise the meanings of artworks in relation to geography and history. The second is affective reproduction, which we use to address deliberately shocking arrangements of reproductions with photographs that include ruins, artworks or people. We emphasise that both strategies aim at a specific group of viewers whose experiences oscillate between memories of war and hopes for the future. The reproductions we discuss participated in the construction of the postwar geopolitical order in Central Europe.