Baroque in Poland

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
(Redirected from
Polish Baroque
)
Part of a series on the
Culture of Poland
History
People
Languages
Traditions
Mythology
Cuisine
Festivals
Religion
Art
Literature
Music and Performing arts
Media
Sport
Monuments
Symbols

The Polish Baroque lasted from the early 17th to the mid-18th century. As with Baroque style elsewhere in Europe, Poland's Baroque emphasized the richness and triumphant power of contemporary art forms. In contrast to the previous, Renaissance style which sought to depict the beauty and harmony of nature, Baroque artists strove to create their own vision of the world. The result was manifold, regarded by some critics as grand and dramatic, but sometimes also chaotic and disharmonious and tinged with affectation and religious exaltation, thus reflecting the turbulent times of the 17th-century Europe.

Baroque and Sarmatism

Further information: Sarmatism
Portrait of Jakub Narzymski by Szymon Czechowicz, 1738

The Polish Baroque was influenced by Sarmatism, the culture of the Polish nobility (szlachta).[1] Sarmatism became highly influenced by the Baroque style and produced a unique mix of Oriental (Ottoman) and Western (French, Italian) styles.[1] Those Oriental influences stemmed from a large border shared by Poland with the Ottoman Empire, and the frequent skirmishes between the two countries.[1]

A Sarmatist thought had praised the idyllic countryside-existence, and the liberal

Enlightenment in Poland
, Sarmatism was often regarded as a backward and ultraconservative relic of the past.

On a more material realm,

saber and scimitar.[1] Ottoman daggers, sheaths, carpets, helmets, saddles, klims, rugs, tapestries and embroideries were also common: what was not acquired from trade came as loot from many military conflicts along the Commonwealth southern border.[1] The manor (dwór, dworek) of the Polish nobleman was decorated with such war trophies.[1] Some luxury items were of domestic produce, often imitating the Orient style;[1] most were imported from the West via Danzig (Gdańsk) or from the East. Displaying one's wealth was important, and excuses were many: the name day of the patron saint as well as weddings and funerals were observed in extravagant fashion.[1] A distinctive art of coffin portraits emerged during that period.[1]

Counter-reformation

Plafond Allegory of Spring by Jerzy Siemiginowski-Eleuter, 1680s

The

Bohemian Brothers was located).[1]
The eventual victory of the counter-reformation in Poland would eventually revive and buttress the Catholic identity of Poland.

Saints Peter and Paul Church in Kraków, Poland

The monumental castle

entre cour et jardin (between the entrance court and the garden). Its architecture, a merger of European art with old Commonwealth building traditions, is visible in Potocki Palace in Radzyń Podlaski, Raczyński Palace in Rogalin and Wiśniowiecki Palace in Vyshnivets
.

Church of St. Johns and Vilnius University

During the late 17th century, the most famous architect in the Commonwealth was the Dutch-born

Otwock Palace, Branicki Palace, St. Kazimierz Church and the Church of St. Anne
.

A notable style of Baroque architecture emerged in the 18th century with the work of

Saint Sophia Cathedral in Polotsk
, which was reconstructed between 1738 and 1765.

Architecture

The first Baroque structure in the

Nieśwież (after 1945 Niasvizh in Belarus).[7][8] The church also holds a distinction of being the first domed basilica with a Baroque façade in the Commonwealth and Eastern Europe.[8]

In the subsequent years of the early 17th century, Baroque architecture spread over the Commonwealth. Important Baroque churches built during this early phase of the style included the

Pažaislis monastery in Kaunas, the Dominican Church[11] and St. George's Church in Lwów (present day Lviv, Ukraine). Examples from the late 17th-century include the Jesuit Church in Poznań, St. Francis Xavier Cathedral in Grodno, Royal Chapel in Gdańsk (which incorporates an eclectic architectural style based on a mix of Polish and Dutch building traditions),[12] and Sanctuary of St. Mary in Masuria (built in the Tyrolean Baroque style).[13] Notable examples of residential Baroque architecture from this time period include the Ujazdów Castle, Wilanów Palace and Krasiński Palace in Warsaw
.

Wilanów Palace in Warsaw, the 17th- and 18th-century summer residence of Polish kings

The monumental castle

entre cour et jardin (between the entrance court and the garden). Its architecture, a merger of European art with old Commonwealth building traditions, is visible in Potocki Palace in Radzyń Podlaski, Raczyński Palace in Rogalin and Wiśniowiecki Palace in Vyshnivets
.

During the late 17th century, the most famous architect in the Commonwealth was the Dutch-born

Otwock Palace, Branicki Palace, St. Kazimierz Church and the Church of St. Anne
.

A notable style of Baroque architecture emerged in the 18th century with the work of

Saint Sophia Cathedral in Polotsk
, which was reconstructed between 1738 and 1765.

Early Polish baroque buildings were often designed by foreign (most often, Italian) architects. The first

Nieśwież (now in Belarus). The first baroque building in present-day Poland was the Church of St. Peter and Paul in Kraków by Giovanni Battista Trevano. The Jewish population in this period was large and prosperous, and many handsome Polish Jewish synagogues were built in baroque style. A handful of these buildings survive, including the Włodawa Synagogue
.

Secular Baroque architecture also grew. The royal

palace of Ujazdów, was built by Trevano between 1619 and 1625.[1] Palace of Ujazdów was soon overshadowed by the Wilanów Palace, raised by King John III Sobieski between 1677 and 1696.[1] Style of those new royal mansions was soon imitated by numerous magnates who did not want to fall behind the times, leading to numerous baroque residences springing throughout Polish countryside, such as at Kruszyna (1630, built for Voivode Kasper Doenhoff), Łańcut (1629–1641, rebuilt for Stanisław Lubomirski),[14] Wiśnicz (1616–1621, also for Stanisław Lubomirski), Ujazd (Krzyżtopór built in 1628-1644 for Krzysztof Ossoliński).[1]

Prominent examples

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 0-89357-266-7 Cultural background
  2. ^ a b "Palaces and Castles in a Lion Country". www.lvivtoday.com.ua. June 2, 2008. Archived from the original on 2020-04-25. Retrieved 2009-05-19.
  3. ^
    ISBN 0-19-210006-8
    .
  4. ^ a b Danuta Szmit-Zawierucha (July 2003). "Tylman van Gameren of Warsaw". Articles. Warsaw Voice.pl. Retrieved November 30, 2012. (in English)
  5. ^
    ISBN 9955-463-02-3
    .
  6. ^ a b Christiane Bauermeister: Litauen, 2007, Seite 70 (Digitalisat)
  7. ^ Aliaksiej Sierka. "The Farny Roman-Catholic Church". www.belarusguide.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2010. Retrieved 2010-08-06.
  8. ^
    ISBN 83-232-0408-X
    .
  9. ^
    ISBN 1-85828-168-7
    .
  10. ^ Mark Salter; Gordon McLachlan; Chris Scott (2000). The spirit of austerity and the materials of opulence: Architectural sources of St. Casimir's Chapel in Vilnius. Journal of Baltic Studies, Volume 31, Issue 1. pp. 5–43.
  11. ISBN 3-7845-7611-7
    .
  12. ^ Doreen E. Greig (1987). The reluctant colonists: Netherlanders abroad in the 17th and 18th centuries. Van Gorcum. p. 27.
  13. ISBN 3-88618-088-3
    .
  14. ^ (in English) "Castle's history". www.zamek-lancut.pl. Archived from the original on 2021-01-19. Retrieved 2010-08-01.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Baroque_in_Poland&oldid=1199220048"