Soon there will take place the unveiling of the commemorative plate dedicated to Andrzej Stasiuk – a well-known modern writer. The aim of the Writers Avenue, being created at Ł. Górnicki Town Public Library BOOK GALLERY in Oświęcim is to commemorate the outstanding living writers. At the Writers Avenue, the authors themselves are going to take part in the celebration of unveiling their commemorative plates decorated with their autograph and a selected quote from their works. Their arrival at Oświęcim is also going to be the holiday for all the people who still value the written words in the era of picture culture. Please remember that the Town Council etsablished the Writers Avenue during its session in June this year, giving this name to the pedestrian precinct at the BOOK GALLERY.
The first author who is going to be honoured at the Oświęcim Writers Avenue will be Andrzej Stasiuk. This extraordinary prose writer, poet and playwright is probably known to all the literary critics in the world. He is the author of “Mury Hebronu” [The Walls of Hebron], “Dukla”, “Opowieści Galicyjskie” [Galician Tales], “Dziewięć” [Nine], „Jadąc do Babadag” [Travelling to Babadag], „Taksim”, “Dziennik pisany później” [Diary written later] and others. He has received several awards, including the recent Vilenica 2008 – The International Literary Award, Gdynia 2010 Literary Award, 2011 Stanisław Vincenzo Award of the Economical Forum and he City of Kraków – New Culture of the New Europe and annual 2011 Award of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage in literature.
The final decision about the chosen author is made by the Chapter constituting of: prof. Joanna Papuzińska – research fellow of the Warsaw University, poet and prose writer, journalist, pedagogue, historian, critic and researcher of the children and teenage literature, Michał Rusinek – former secretary of the Nobel Winner Wisława Szymborska – now creating the foundation of her name, prof. Krzysztof Zajas – research fellow of the Polish Language Department of the Jagiellonian University, Janusz Chwierut – the Mayor of the Town of Oświęcim and Leszek Palus – the Director of the BOOK GALLERY Library in Oświęcim – says Mariola Talewicz, Deputy Director of the Library. Preliminarily, the project includes setting of approximately 30 bronze plates into the Writers Avenue, at least one a year.
The unveiling of the bronze plate will take place during the celebration on the 26th October 2012 at 5pm. Just after this event there is going to be the meeting with Andrzej Stasiuk moderated by prof. Jarosław Fazan and Krzysztof Zajas of the Jagiellonian University.
The idea of creating the Writers Avenue is connected with the world famous Fame Avenues. However, unlike the idols of the mass pop culture, the fine art is valued – the art of words. The magnitude of the author is not just the short flash light in the temporary current events, their works stay for long in the memory of their readers, societies, nations. The books written by them are on library shelves for many generations, centuries offering the food for thought to their recipients. The writer, as any other artists – and even more – deserve to be eternized, also in this word-for-word, material meaning in the form of solid signs engraved in ‘stone”. The Avenue will put stress on the person of the writer, author, not only on his works. Very often the work itself stays longer in the conscience and memory of the reader whereas the authors themselves vanish, get lost in the fugitive memory. The project is also to add some cultural, humane and peace values to the symbolic meaning of Oświęcim – the Messenger of Peace – in the eyes of the world, This is the explanation of the creators and organizers of establishing the Writers Avenue in Oświęcim.
We really want to balance the relation between the past, present and future; to stop Oświęcim from being associated only with the former KL Auschwitz-Birkenau camp. Let us make the word “Oświęcim” stop being associated with only negative connotations, and the opposite, let it become the synonym of life, development, progress and openness in the common consciousness – say Mariola Talewicz and Leszek Palus.
The Writers Avenue is probably a unique project in Poland – holding the idea of commemorating the writers. The meetings with the writers are planned to become artistic events, making Oświęcim the initiator of the actions for the sake of the future. It will be another cultural form of the existence of this town – confirms prof. Krzysztof Zajas.
Mariola Talewicz
Biblioteka GALERIA KSIĄŻKI
www.mbp-oswiecim.pl
