DOI Artikel:
Wójcik, Agata: The Society for Polish Applied Art versus the Vienna Workshops - an attempt at comparison: stylistic analogies in furniture an interior design
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.51757#0127
Rocznik Historii Sztuki, tom XLIV
PAN, 2019
DOI 10.24425/rhs.2019.131203
AGATA WÓJCIK
PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY OF CRACOW
THE SOCIETY FOR POLISH APPLIED ART VERSUS
THE VIENNA WORKSHOPS - AN ATTEMPT AT COMPARISON.
STYLISTIC ANALOGIES IN FURNITURE AND INTERIOR DESIGN*
The Society for Polish Applied Art (Towarzystwo Polska Sztuka Stosowana, TPSS) was established in
1901, in Krakow on the wave of the revival of crafts; soon its circle included the most outstanding Polish
designers. One of the TPSS activities was to support Polish furniture designers, facilitate them to receive
commisions, and present their projects at exhibitions. Due to the geographical proximity to, but above
all, to the ideological affinity with the Vienna Workshops (Wiener Werkstätte), the work of the Society
can be juxtaposed with the activities of the latter. Analyzing the style of furniture designers associated
with the TPSS, three tendencies can be noticed - inspiration with folk art, a turn to old styles, and the
tendency to simplify furniture pieces and give them minimalistic forms, devoid of ornamentation. Usually,
the stream associated with folk art, related to the pursuit of the national style, is brought to the fore. In
this text, however, I would like to draw attention to the third, the most avant-garde, path. A new look
at Polish furniture of the early 20th century was presented by Arma Sieradzka. She noted the analogies
between Polish projects and the works of Austrian and German artists.* 1 Following this interpretation path,
I wish to compare the work of Polish designers associated with the TPSS with that of the artists from
the Vienna Workshops.
THE POLISH APPLIED ART SOCIETY - VIENNA WORKSHOPS - COMMON IDEAS AND GOALS
The source of ideas for both the TPSS and the Vienna Workshops2 lied in the English Craft Revival
Movement. Both societies set themselves the goal of combating historicism and widespread kitsch. Jerzy
Warchalowski, the main theoretician on the TPSS, wrote: “to bum, to discard all the ugly and unnecessary
thoughtless pieces of furniture, among which we live [...] let a moderately wealthy man not imitate the
master of the palace, let him not be dressed in forgeries of royal styles, let his own living conditions and
* The National Science Centre (Cracow, Poland) has supported this research (a research project The Fathers of the Polish design.
The Society of Polish Applied Art. Interior and furniture design, no 2015/17/D/HS2/01215).
1 A. Sieradzka, Początki awangardy w meblarstwie polskim 1904-1914, [in:] Studia z architektury nowoczesnej, ed. J. Kucha-
rzewska, J. Malinowski, Toruń 2007, pp. 131-143.
2 Information on The Vienna Workshops based on: Wien um 1900. Kunst und Kultur, ed. M. Marchetti, Wien, München 1985;
W.J. Schweiger, M. Brausch, Ch. Brandstätter, Wiener Werkstätte. Art et artisanat 1903-1932, Bruxelles 1983; W.J. Schweiger,
Art nouveau a Vienne. Le wiener Werkstätte, Paris 1990; G. Fahr-Becker, Wiener Werkstaette 1903-1932, Köln 2015; Yearning for
Beauty. The Wiener Werkstätte and the Stoclet Hause, ed. P. Noever, V. Doufour, E.F. Sekler, Ostifem-Ruit 2016.
PAN, 2019
DOI 10.24425/rhs.2019.131203
AGATA WÓJCIK
PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY OF CRACOW
THE SOCIETY FOR POLISH APPLIED ART VERSUS
THE VIENNA WORKSHOPS - AN ATTEMPT AT COMPARISON.
STYLISTIC ANALOGIES IN FURNITURE AND INTERIOR DESIGN*
The Society for Polish Applied Art (Towarzystwo Polska Sztuka Stosowana, TPSS) was established in
1901, in Krakow on the wave of the revival of crafts; soon its circle included the most outstanding Polish
designers. One of the TPSS activities was to support Polish furniture designers, facilitate them to receive
commisions, and present their projects at exhibitions. Due to the geographical proximity to, but above
all, to the ideological affinity with the Vienna Workshops (Wiener Werkstätte), the work of the Society
can be juxtaposed with the activities of the latter. Analyzing the style of furniture designers associated
with the TPSS, three tendencies can be noticed - inspiration with folk art, a turn to old styles, and the
tendency to simplify furniture pieces and give them minimalistic forms, devoid of ornamentation. Usually,
the stream associated with folk art, related to the pursuit of the national style, is brought to the fore. In
this text, however, I would like to draw attention to the third, the most avant-garde, path. A new look
at Polish furniture of the early 20th century was presented by Arma Sieradzka. She noted the analogies
between Polish projects and the works of Austrian and German artists.* 1 Following this interpretation path,
I wish to compare the work of Polish designers associated with the TPSS with that of the artists from
the Vienna Workshops.
THE POLISH APPLIED ART SOCIETY - VIENNA WORKSHOPS - COMMON IDEAS AND GOALS
The source of ideas for both the TPSS and the Vienna Workshops2 lied in the English Craft Revival
Movement. Both societies set themselves the goal of combating historicism and widespread kitsch. Jerzy
Warchalowski, the main theoretician on the TPSS, wrote: “to bum, to discard all the ugly and unnecessary
thoughtless pieces of furniture, among which we live [...] let a moderately wealthy man not imitate the
master of the palace, let him not be dressed in forgeries of royal styles, let his own living conditions and
* The National Science Centre (Cracow, Poland) has supported this research (a research project The Fathers of the Polish design.
The Society of Polish Applied Art. Interior and furniture design, no 2015/17/D/HS2/01215).
1 A. Sieradzka, Początki awangardy w meblarstwie polskim 1904-1914, [in:] Studia z architektury nowoczesnej, ed. J. Kucha-
rzewska, J. Malinowski, Toruń 2007, pp. 131-143.
2 Information on The Vienna Workshops based on: Wien um 1900. Kunst und Kultur, ed. M. Marchetti, Wien, München 1985;
W.J. Schweiger, M. Brausch, Ch. Brandstätter, Wiener Werkstätte. Art et artisanat 1903-1932, Bruxelles 1983; W.J. Schweiger,
Art nouveau a Vienne. Le wiener Werkstätte, Paris 1990; G. Fahr-Becker, Wiener Werkstaette 1903-1932, Köln 2015; Yearning for
Beauty. The Wiener Werkstätte and the Stoclet Hause, ed. P. Noever, V. Doufour, E.F. Sekler, Ostifem-Ruit 2016.