1978 Original Polish Movie Poster "Man of the Marble" Art by Waldema Swierzy

Description

1978 Original Polish Movie Poster "Man of the Marble" Art by Waldema Swierzy.   Excellent original Polish Theater poster.   Excellent condition poster measuring 26" x 38"  One minor wrinkle approx 3/4" x 2" on bottom Right corner.  Barely noticeable, and would be easily covered by frame and mat.   Presents very well.  Excellent example of vintage creative Polish Art school work by oppressed up and coming artists.    Please see photos to evaluate condition for yourself.  Photos are part of the description.
Waldemar Świerzy one of the masters of Polish poster art was a graphic designer and book illustrator
Waldemar Świerzy * born 9 September 1931 - died 27 November 2013 in Warsaw * graduate of the Cracow Academy of Fine Arts * 1995-2001 he was a head of the poster design studio at the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts * member of AGI (Alliance Graphique Internationale) * his works in collection of
MoMA
, New York * major awards: Grand Prix Tolouse-Lautrec, Paris, 1959; 1st prize at the Sao Paulo Biennial, 1969; Silver Medal at the 4th International Poster Biennale in Warsaw, 1972; Gold Medal at the 6th International Poster Biennale in Warsaw, 1976; 1st Prize at the 2nd International Biennial of Posters in Lahti, Finland, 1977; Gold Medals in 1965, 1971, 1975, 1989 and Silver Medals in 1977, 1987, 1995, 1999 at the Polish Poster Biennials in Katowice, Poland; Hollywood Reporters Awards for the poster in 1975 and 1985; Gold and Bronze Medal at the International Jazz Salon, 1985; he won twelve Prizes of the Year in the 'Best Warsaw Poster' competitions
Man of Marble
(
Człowiek z marmuru
) is a 1977 Polish film directed by Andrzej Wajda
. It chronicles the fall from grace of a fictional heroic Polish bricklayer, Mateusz Birkut (played by Jerzy Radziwilowicz
), who became the Stakhanovite
symbol of an over-achieving worker, in Nowa Huta
, a new (real life) socialist city near Krakow
. Agnieszka, played by  Krysyna Janda
in her first role, is a young filmmaker who is making her diploma film (a student graduation requirement) on Birkut, whose whereabouts seems to have been lost two decades later. The title refers to the propagandist marble statues made in Birkut's image. It is somewhat of a surprise that Wajda would have been able to make such a film,
sub silentio
attacking the socialist realism
of Nowa Huta, revealing the use of propaganda and political corruption during the period of Stalinism
. The film director presaged the loosening grip of the Soviets that came with the Solidarity Movement
, though it has been acknowledged by Polish film historians that due to censorship the script languished in developement hell
since 1962. The film extensively uses original documentation footage from the construction of Nowa Huta and other subjects of Poland's early communist era, as well as the propagandist/inspirational music of Stalinist Poland.
About The Poster
: Polish posters have come to stand apart from the advertising design conventions fostered in Europe during the 20th century. It was during the communist regime, a time when culture was closely monitored by the state, that Polish artists found liberation in poster art. Ironically, this foremost public artform became ground for individual expression. During that period, the cultural institutions (of theatre and cinema especially) flourished as they were funded by government agencies. Artists freshly out of the fine arts academy flocked towards poster production as the demand for this art was rapidly growing. The result became some of the most unique and expressive posters the world has ever seen - and artworks in themselves.
This and other pieces of Polish poster art we will be listing in the near future come from the personal collection of a Polish artist who collected personally and then ultimately opened and ran a small museum dedicated to to Polish graphic arts until it's closing for health reasons.
Shipped in a high quality cardboard tube