en-56 | QUART

Faculty of Historical and Pedagocial Science

Journal financed by the
Faculty of Historical and Pedagocial Science
at the University of Wroclaw

Numer 2(56)/2020

Editorial

In the Polish language there are two words whose meanings are linked to the extremely rich content filling the latest issue of “Quart”. These words are “wandering” and “travel”. With appearances of closeness, they are semantically distant from each other, connected either with our life in its existential, general aspect, or more concrete and immediate one. I mention it because it is impossible to summarize in a short introduction the vastness of factual and interpretative material contained in the texts presented to You in the newest issue of our quarterly.
In nine essays devoted, generally speaking, to artistic journeys and artists in early modern times (mainly from the 17th to the 18th century), we can find traces and descriptions of these voyages, starting with artists from the subalpine region of Ticono, who were peregrinating in search of work and commissions to Central Europe (Jana Zapletalová), from the Italian journey of Carl G. Langhans (Jerzy K. Kos) or from the departure to Poland from Paris of Jan Piotr Norblin de la Gourdaine (Konrad Niemira). However, there are also other, more virtual travels, such as the wandering of artistic motifs and the circulation of images of distant regions stored in libraries, the influence of religious texts on works of art, and changes made to architectural designs under the influence of the requirements of a particular historical moment. These are also reflected in the latest “Quart” (Teresa Tylicka, Jacek Tylicki, Marcin Wisłocki, Tadeusz Bernatowicz). It also contains a block of texts devoted to educational trips around Europe of young Polish magnates in the 17th and 18th centuries (Adam Kucharski, Małgorzata Wyrzykowska). The last article published in our quarterly, written by Anna Schultz and Marta Wróblewska, links the early modern era with times closer to us. The description of the journey made by Daniel Chodowiecki in the 18th century from Berlin to Gdańsk and its repetition by Polish artists in 2018 is an example of a “postmodern” reception of concrete events from the past transformed into material of contemporary art.
And that would be the end of my introduction, if it were not for Marek Zgórniak’s interesting polemic with the article by Irena Olchowska-Schmidt in the first issue of “Quart” in 2019, the subject of which was a possible plagiarism by one of the most famous Polish painters of the 19th century – Józef Brandt.
A travel, as we know, is not only a movement in space, but also an opportunity to exchange thoughts and to intellectually intensify existence. I hope that reading our quarterly will help our Dear Readers to fulfil all these noble goals and lofty tasks.
At this point, I would like to thank Prof. Dr. Andrzej Kozieł, the originator and guest editor of this issue, for the fruitful cooperation.

On behalf of the Editors
Prof. Dr. Hab. Waldemar Okoń

SPIS TREŚCI / TABLE OF CONTENTS:

Spis treści / Table of Contents