Scenografia Wincentego Drabika w Teatrze Polskim w Warszawie

Abstract

Wincenty Drabik’s stage designs in Teatr Polski in Warsaw

Wincenty Drabik was a graduate from the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow in the years 1902-1904 in Professor Józef Unierzyski’s class, as well as Stanisław Wyspiański’s student in 1904-1905. In the year 1903, at Wyspiański’s instigation, he completed his studies in Vienna, in Hermann Burghardt’s and Johann Kautsky’s decoration studios. At the time he also received an education at Kunstgewerbeschule. In 1905 he began to work at Teatr Miejski in Lviv, in a painting studio, under Stanislaw Jasieński’s direction. From 1912 Wincenty Drabik was engaged by Arnold Szyfman to work in his newly-created Teatr Polski Drabik’s most interesting settings in Teatr Polski were: Calderon de la Barca’s The Cons taint Prince, directed by Juliusz Osterwa (13 Sep. 1918), Zygmunt Krasiński’s The Undivine Comedy, directed by Arnold Szyfman (13 Jan. 1920), Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, directed by Karol Borowski (12 March 1920), Moliere’s The Bourgeois Gentleman, directed by Ryszard Boleslawski and Leon Schiller (15 June 1920). Drabik’s settings expressed the artist’s gift for epitomizing, drama characterizing, as well as for atmosphere build-up by the simplest means. They introduced symbolism and expression onto the stage. Drabik often defined space with reference to a number of personae involved (Undivine comedy)', moreover he used deformation to emphasize the character of a play. In his settings the colour harmonized with the atmosphere surrounding dramatis personae. Many a time colour and shape expansiveness and shocking colour orgy were characteristic of his works (The Constant Prince). In Wincenty Drabik’s settings two main trends manifested themselves, between which Drabik repeatedly chose in his artistic pursuit: “Architectural” trend, following Craig, and „Painting” trend, presented more frequently and more effectively, mainly due to his fascination with the works of Stanislaw Wyspiański, Leon Bakst and Golovin, Alexandre Benois, Natalia Goncharova and Michail Larionov. Wincenty Drabik made an effort to transform drama into painting and theatrical values. It was a significant discovery in the field of Polish theatrical staging in the first two decades of the 20th century. Besides Karol Frycz, as well as Andrzej and Zbigniew Pronaszko, Wincenty Drabik became a leading reformer of the Polish stage. Translated by Włodzimierz Szrajer