DOI article:
Danielewicz, Iwona: The Collection of Gabriela Zapolska
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.18947#0122
Exposition Universelle in Paris, but she then withdrew it. She was nevertheless
interested in the painter and tried to help him. “Pankiewicz is ‘playing’ in
Warsaw”, she wrote in a letter to Wiślicki “Receive him with open arms,
cordially, the way you do. Find him a few commissions. That boy was dying
of hunger here in Paris. Take care of him. You’11 be doing a good thing, he’s
got great talent.”'1 She sold two of the painter’s canvasses in order to support
him financially.' In this initial period in the formation of her views, Zapolska’s
increasingly close acąuaintance with Stefan Laurysiewicz turned out to be
however decisive, although it was actually she who was the first Polish critic
who became mterested in Camille Pissarro.6 * 8 9 * She discerned the influence of
these new trends on Academic art. In her review of the Salon of the Societe
des Artistes Franęais in 1891, her interest and astonishment were aroused only
by the pamting A chacun sa chimere by Henri Martin, an artist who used
a pomtillist techniąue but depicted traditional subject matter.'
Korzeniewska mamtains that Zapolska’s interest in Impressionist painting
resulted from her cult for naturalism, especially for Zola.1(1 Apparently the
circle of the Theatre Fibrę, with whom the writer was connected sińce the
beginning of 1892, had a decisive significance. The outstanding director of
this stage, Andre Antome, using the models of new artistic trends, completely
reformed the art of stagmg, liberating it not only from old-fashioned
conventions, but from “dusty” decorations as well. A lover of painting, an
admirer of Signac and a friend of the draftsman and painter Georges Facombe,
he introduced the principle of changing stage settings together with the
presentation of a new work. Each time he entrusted a different artist with the
creation of posters and lllustrations for the theatre program. Thus such figures
as Toulouse-Fautrec, Signac, Serusier, and Ibels produced materiał for him. It
was probably in the environment of the Theatre Fibrę that Zapolska first
became acąuainted with Charles Henry’s concept of colour, as well as with
the principles of naturalistic theatre.
A real breakthrough in the writer’s artistic views came as a result of her trip
to Brittany in the summer of 1893, where she met Paul Ranson and Paul
Serusier in Huelgóat. Initially she approached the new ideas which Serusier
introduced to her rather mistrustfully; in a letter from August of that year she
wrote: “I would like to extract something from the symbolists, such little
monsters painted in three tones [a drawing follows here]. Something like that.
And that’s supposed to represent a storm or a funeral, or something similar [...]
They have white tunics, gold rings, and refer to each other as Nabis. They say
that they’ve got a ruby in le nombril [their navel], but it is a symbol and un
rubis morał [a spiritual ruby]”.11 A year later Zapolska was already a great
6 Listy..., op. cit., I, p. 112.
Ibid., p. 122.
s Publicystyka, op. cit., I, p. LVII, fn. 39.
9 Publicystyka, op. cit., II, p. 20.
111 Publicystyka, op. cit., I, pp. LI—LII.
" Listy..., op. cit., I, p. 421.
116
interested in the painter and tried to help him. “Pankiewicz is ‘playing’ in
Warsaw”, she wrote in a letter to Wiślicki “Receive him with open arms,
cordially, the way you do. Find him a few commissions. That boy was dying
of hunger here in Paris. Take care of him. You’11 be doing a good thing, he’s
got great talent.”'1 She sold two of the painter’s canvasses in order to support
him financially.' In this initial period in the formation of her views, Zapolska’s
increasingly close acąuaintance with Stefan Laurysiewicz turned out to be
however decisive, although it was actually she who was the first Polish critic
who became mterested in Camille Pissarro.6 * 8 9 * She discerned the influence of
these new trends on Academic art. In her review of the Salon of the Societe
des Artistes Franęais in 1891, her interest and astonishment were aroused only
by the pamting A chacun sa chimere by Henri Martin, an artist who used
a pomtillist techniąue but depicted traditional subject matter.'
Korzeniewska mamtains that Zapolska’s interest in Impressionist painting
resulted from her cult for naturalism, especially for Zola.1(1 Apparently the
circle of the Theatre Fibrę, with whom the writer was connected sińce the
beginning of 1892, had a decisive significance. The outstanding director of
this stage, Andre Antome, using the models of new artistic trends, completely
reformed the art of stagmg, liberating it not only from old-fashioned
conventions, but from “dusty” decorations as well. A lover of painting, an
admirer of Signac and a friend of the draftsman and painter Georges Facombe,
he introduced the principle of changing stage settings together with the
presentation of a new work. Each time he entrusted a different artist with the
creation of posters and lllustrations for the theatre program. Thus such figures
as Toulouse-Fautrec, Signac, Serusier, and Ibels produced materiał for him. It
was probably in the environment of the Theatre Fibrę that Zapolska first
became acąuainted with Charles Henry’s concept of colour, as well as with
the principles of naturalistic theatre.
A real breakthrough in the writer’s artistic views came as a result of her trip
to Brittany in the summer of 1893, where she met Paul Ranson and Paul
Serusier in Huelgóat. Initially she approached the new ideas which Serusier
introduced to her rather mistrustfully; in a letter from August of that year she
wrote: “I would like to extract something from the symbolists, such little
monsters painted in three tones [a drawing follows here]. Something like that.
And that’s supposed to represent a storm or a funeral, or something similar [...]
They have white tunics, gold rings, and refer to each other as Nabis. They say
that they’ve got a ruby in le nombril [their navel], but it is a symbol and un
rubis morał [a spiritual ruby]”.11 A year later Zapolska was already a great
6 Listy..., op. cit., I, p. 112.
Ibid., p. 122.
s Publicystyka, op. cit., I, p. LVII, fn. 39.
9 Publicystyka, op. cit., II, p. 20.
111 Publicystyka, op. cit., I, pp. LI—LII.
" Listy..., op. cit., I, p. 421.
116