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The art of Agnieszka Solawa

Currently in an ongoing art exhibit of paintings on glass at the Summit NJ Public Library. Her work can be found on the web here.

My goal is to introduce to the American Artists and Public the forgotten and sublime art of Reverse Painting on glass, an art I was born into and lived with through my contacts with ancient Polish traditions that still survived in the villages and the Mountains of my homeland. I discovered the forgotten techniques and even reinvented them to fit modern technologies and still preserve the soul of the Ancient Ones.

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Catching up

On some older news in my inbox:

The irony

From Reuters: Republicans urge Obama to roll back “Buy American”

Republicans urged President Barack Obama on Thursday to roll back “Buy American” provisions of this year’s economic stimulus package that they said were delaying public works projects and costing American jobs.

“Clearly these provisions are creating problems for our domestic companies and employees that must be addressed,” Representative Wally Herger said at a “roundtable” Republicans organized to hear industry concerns about the measure.

Representative Kevin Brady urged the White House to exempt state, county and city governments from the Buy American requirement “so that we can get those dollars working, create these jobs, get these projects in place and move this economy.”

…

The Buy American provision included in the $787 billion economic stimulus act requires all public works projects funded by the bill use only U.S.-made goods.

As a result, many local jurisdictions receiving Recovery Act funds are faced with ensuring that their projects comply with the Buy American mandate.

That’s not as simple as it sounds because many products contain components from around the world.

…

Groups calling for changes in the Buy American provisions include the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Emergency Committee for American Trade, which together represents most of the biggest U.S. companies.

They said they feared other countries would retaliate by passing their own “buy domestic” provisions, as Canadian cities are threatening to do because their firms are being shut out of U.S. stimulus projects.

So, don’t do anything to stimulate and create manufacturing jobs in the U.S., and ensure those jobs keep getting shipped off-shore, while at the same time you decry the immigrant for “stealing” the last McDonald’s job left in the U.S.. Complete hypocrites.

On Ukrainian history:

From The Day: Mazepa: Architect of European Ukraine?

…Peter I’s Russia found its ideal dimension in Imperium, a —great form— with its inertial imperative of constantly developing supranational schemes aimed at compressing all conquered space into a single ideological whole.

Victorious as it was, Peter I’s Russia built its society out of —subjects— and —serfs.— Defeated as it was, Mazepa’s Ukraine was potential society of citizens.

Mazepa’s Ukraine had thus taken a resolute and decisive step in the direction of Europe at a time of anti-absolutist revolutions. Peter I’s Russia realized itself in an imperial structure whose messianic concept was generally anti-European.

It was a bolt of lightning that split the family tree of Old Rus’. Since then the confrontation between Ukraine and Russia has been systemic and conceptual. The gist of this confrontation is that Ukraine was not an obedient territorial unit open for colonization. Ukraine was Europe’s last bulwark retaining a political tradition that was absolutely unacceptable for Russian absolutism and thus very dangerous for centralized governance. It was a republican tradition. Rooted in the philosophic legacy of European culture, this tradition became the basis of the Ukrainian idea, i.e., a republican and consequently national idea, which has since been in opposition to the Russian Idea as an imperial and consequently immanently supranational one…

It is a complex article which attempts to draw the currents of the Reformation, Humanism, Orthodoxy, Polish-Ukrainian history, and the Khmelnytsky revolt into one large bundle giving rise to Mazepa’s movement. I’m really not sure how the Reformation and humanism play out here. I would ascribe the influence of Cossack independence and self-determination as well as the philosophies already existent in the Polish-Lithuanian, (later Ruthenian) Commonwealth. Those philosophies were already well settled, and well known in the Ukraine, when the rest of Europe met the Reformation and the advent of humanism as a philosophy.

Learning about your new neighbors:

From the Times: Polska! Year comes to London

Slap-bang in the centre of Warsaw there’s a striking neo-Gothic skyscraper called the Palace of Culture. Poles are forever debating whether to demolish it —” it was a gift from Stalin, whose memory is not lovingly tended in these parts. But they could equally well celebrate it. Within its imposing walls it hosts three theatres, a cinema, bars and museums. What other capital city’s most prominent edifice is an arts centre? —Theatre is the national sport,— says Piotr Gruszczynski, a critic and dramaturge at the high-flying Nowy Theatre. —Poles still believe that theatre can change the world.—

Britons can now enjoy the fruits of this devotion in the form of Polska! Year, a 12-month arts festival that cashes in on the wave of immigration that has left Brits eager to know more about our new neighbours. Poland, we’re being told, is no slumbering ex-Soviet satellite, but Europe’s sixth-biggest country and a star in the international arts firmament.

…—Poland needs to kill its idols,— says Katarzyna Szustow, one of a triumvirate now running the Dramatyczny Theatre, based in the Palace of Culture. Here they like their drama more political. In the 19th century, Szustow says, when Poland was partitioned between Germany, Russia and Habsburg Austria, —it was to the theatre that you went to hear Polish spoken. Then, under the Soviets, theatre was the focal point of dissent. Post-1989 theatre was suddenly meaningless —” the real ‘theatre’ was happening in the public sphere.—

…

The remaining taboos in Polish theatre include homosexuality and Poland’s relationship with its Jewish population. The former is broached by Szustow’s new regime, which programmes live art about gender and the body; the latter by a new play at the National Theatre in London, Our Class by Tadeusz Slobodzianek. His play, which confronts the country’s complicity in Second World War atrocities, hasn’t been staged in Poland —” Slobodzianek is loath to apply for state funding because of the controversy it would generate. All theatres are state-funded and highly bureaucratic, which means plenty of activity, but a lack of flexibility.

The only other taboo is laughter. —Making comedy in Polish theatre means you are not an artist,— Gruszczynski says. He’s exaggerating —“ perhaps for comic effect. But for Britons striving to reduce our own theatre to a branch of the leisure industry Polish drama takes some getting used to. And yet, the sense of a thriving, passionate scene, and of a younger generation exploiting the public role theatre has retained from the Soviet years is exhilarating. If Polska! Year can communicate that excitement, its shows will be well worth seeing.

A fitting tribute:

Dr. Jerzy J. Maciuszko – Ambassador of Polish Culture and one of the most dedicated members of the Kosciuszko Foundation by Olga Teresa Sarbinowska

Those of us who were raised in Communist Poland have much in common. We are direct, act with a characteristic ease, and we tend to pay little attention to manners. The Polish post-war generations stand in direct contrast to the Polish pre-war intelligentsia. To many of us the pre-war intelligentsia is an abstract notion often associated with rigid etiquette and snobbism. When at the end of the eighties I arrived in Cleveland, the first representative of Polonia who reached out to me was Doctor Jerzy Maciuszko, a charming, courteous man full of gentleness, humbleness, politeness, and inherent high culture.

A Warsavian by birth, Jerzy Maciuszko, is a 1936 graduate of the Department of English Language at the University of Warsaw. He began his American career in 1951 as a lecturer of Polish Literature at Alliance College in Pennsylvania. Soon thereafter, he moved to Cleveland where he enrolled in the doctoral program in library sciences at Case Western Reserve University and worked in the department of foreign literature at the Cleveland Public Library. Upon defending his Ph.D. dissertation, Maciuszko was promoted to director of the prestigious John G. White Department at The Cleveland Public Library and continued his academic career teaching Polish literature at Case Western Reserve University.

In 1969, Dr. Maciuszko accepted the position of Chairman of the Slavic Studies Department at Alliance College in Pennsylvania. It should be noted that Alliance College was established by the Polish National Alliance. An informational brochure published by the College at the beginning of the seventies explained that “Slavic studies” at most American universities amounted to “Russian studies” while at Alliance College the emphasis was on “Polish studies.” …

Unfortunately in 1974 Dr. Maciuszko left Alliance College and returned to Cleveland where he accepted the directorship of Baldwin-Wallace College’s Ritter Library. Soon after his departure, Alliance College, together with the Center for Polish Studies, closed down. The magnificent Alliance College campus was sold out and the entire complex was turned into a women’s prison.

Accepting a position as the library director at Baldwin-Wallace College, Professor Maciuszko seemingly departed from his involvement in the Polish cause. However, this was not the case. He plunged into the life of Polonia like a missionary driven by an inner fire. He wrote, published, became active in many Polonia organizations, and quickly established himself as a foundation of cultural and intellectual life for the Polish-American community in Cleveland… Furthermore, as an active member, he was involved with the Polish Institute of Arts and Sciences in New York, Polish-American veteran organizations in Cleveland, the Association of Polish Writers Abroad, and the Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies, and others.

…

As a writer, Dr. Maciuszko dedicated his works primarily to Poland and Polonia. Since 1957, he has been publishing reviews of Polish literature in the quarterly World Literature Today. Reviews by him also appeared regularly in The Polish Review and other leading literary journals. In addition, as a prolific writer Dr. Maciuszko has authored numerous forewords and commentaries to various editions of classical literature. …

This prominent Cleveland Pole also wrote a chapter entitled “Polish Letters in America” for the book Poles in America, Frank Mocha, editor (Worzalla Publishing Company, 1978), as well as a chapter entitled “Polish-American Literature” for the book Ethnic Perspectives in American Literature, Di Petro, editor (Modern Languages Association of America, 1983). Numerous encyclopedic entries on Polish writers and poets authored by him appeared in Encyclopedia of World Literature in the 20th Century (Unger Publishing Company, 1975). The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History, John Grabowski, Editor (Indiana University Press, 1987) included an entry by Dr. Maciuszko. He was also a founding member of Choice, the official journal of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL). Choice was first issued in 1964, and since then Dr. Maciuszko has been a regular contributor, writing primarily reviews of Polish literature. He also has served as Chairman of the Slavic Division within ACRL organization.

In 1969 Dr. Maciuszko published The Polish Short Story in English; A Guide and Critical Bibliography (Wayne State University Press). This compendium consisted of summaries of Polish short stories published in English. The work was published within the Millennium Series of the Kosciuszko Foundation. Professor of Polish Studies at Columbia University, Dr. Anna Frajlich, called the book “a monumental work indispensable to all American teachers and students of Polish literature.”

A most puzzling fact is that a significant literary achievement of Dr. Maciuszko’s, to this day, remains completely unknown. To solve this mystery we must travel back in time to the beginning of World War II. In August of 1939, twenty-six-year-old Maciuszko was a member of one of the first military units to stand up to the Nazi war machine. Unfortunately, on September 4th, he was taken prisoner of war, and for the next five and a half years he remained in the German POW camps.

In 1943, the international Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) headquartered in Geneva announced a literary contest among all prisoners held in German POW camps. At night, by candlelight, after an exhaustive work day, while his comrades slept, Maciuszko wrote a short story which he entitled Koncert F-Moll (Concerto in F-minor). He was thrilled to find out later that it had been selected as a winner.

…

In 1974, an American professor wrote in a letter of recommendation that Dr. Maciuszko “still maintains his old-world dignity.” Never giving in to the pressures of the American culture, he has remained faithful to the ideals of his upbringing. Having known Dr. Maciuszko and his wife, Dr. Kathleen Maciuszko, throughout the years, I rediscovered the charm and splendor of Polish pre-war intelligentsia, this culture of mine that at first appeared very distant and incomprehensible, the culture that has been almost lost and forgotten. Today, I greatly value this engaging courtesy coupled with refined dignity and tremendous kindness. In today’s world of aggression, courtesy and kindness are invaluable assets. I salute Dr. Maciuszko for being able, against all odds, to preserve the most precious qualities of the Polish culture and pass them on to the next generations.

Zeal:

From Pew: The —Zeal of the Convert—: Is It the Real Deal?

A common perception about individuals who switch religions is that they are very fervent about their new faith. A new analysis by the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life provides quantitative support for this piece of conventional wisdom often referred to as the “zeal of the convert.” The analysis finds that people who have switched faiths (or joined a faith after being raised unaffiliated with a religion) are indeed slightly more religious than those who have remained in their childhood faith, as measured by the importance of religion in their lives, frequency with which they attend religious services and other measures of religious commitment. However, the analysis also finds that the differences in religious commitment between converts and nonconverts are generally very small and are more apparent among some religious groups than others.

One of the most striking findings of the U.S. Religious Landscape Survey, conducted by the Pew Forum in 2007, was the large number of people who have left their childhood faith. According to the survey, roughly half of all Americans say they have left the faith in which they were raised to adopt another faith or no faith at all, or if they were not raised in a religion, they have since joined one.

The new analysis finds that, overall, people who have switched religions consistently exhibit higher levels of religious commitment than those who still belong to their childhood faith, but the differences are relatively modest…

After joining the PNCC I went through strong convertitis. Affects others more strongly than others I suppose.

In Bridge news:

From the NY Times: Polish Wroclaw Team Blitzes, Winning Universities Title

The first European Universities Championship was played in Opatija, Croatia, from Oct. 4 through last Saturday. The 22 teams from 11 countries (Poland sent 7 teams) played a 10-board round robin.

With one round to go, Paris led Wroclaw-1 by 2 victory points. Paris played against Krakow (lying 15th), and Wroclaw-1 faced Munich (13th).

The final match started well for Paris. On Board 21 the Krakow East-West pair misdefended to let three no-trump through, giving Paris 13 international match points. And on the next deal this same Krakow pair missed three no-trump that was made at the other three tables in these matches, giving Paris another 10 imps.

…

On the penultimate board Wroclaw-1 gained 5 imps and Paris 7. So Paris needed a big swing on the final deal, but it was a dull three no-trump where the only fight was for an overtrick.

Paris had prevailed in its last match by 18 imps, which gave the team 20 victory points, but Wroclaw-1 had won a 38 to 0 blitz, gaining 25 victory points and the gold medals by 3 victory points.

The winning team comprised Zatorski, Nowosadzki, Wojciech Gawel and Piotr Wiankowski.

Bridge is hugely popular in Poland.

PNCC,

The cathedral is complete now

From the Buffalo News: 15 years on a labor of love: Woodcarving Polish priest attributes his ecclesiastical art to the hands of God

The [Very] Rev. Walter Madej has carved out quite a legacy in Lancaster.

It began with a statue of Saul, struck blind on his way to Damascus, and includes the Stations of the Cross, an ornate main altar, a lectern, a 26-foot-long balustered railing and an ambry for holy oils, among other furnishings.

Now, after 15 years of sculpting a stunning array of ecclesiastical art inside Holy Mother of the Rosary Cathedral on Broadway in Lancaster, Madej has completed his final and most complex installment —” a shrine depicting the 20 mysteries of the rosary.

—The cathedral is complete now,— said Madej, a priest commissioned by Holy Mother of the Rosary parish to fill the cathedral with original art.

The collection of Madej’s work is unlike anything else in Western New York.

While many of the area’s glorious older churches boast plenty of beautiful ecclesiastical art, newly built sanctuaries rarely contain commissioned pieces.

Bishop Thaddeus Peplowski of the Polish National Catholic Church admires the latest sculpture by the Rev. Walter Madej, the last piece of a 15-year project at Holy Mother of the Rosary Cathedral in Lancaster.
Bishop Thaddeus Peplowski of the Polish National Catholic Church admires the latest sculpture by the Rev. Walter Madej, the last piece of a 15-year project at Holy Mother of the Rosary Cathedral in Lancaster.

In that respect, Holy Mother of the Rosary, constructed in 1996, is an anomaly. The congregation and the Polish National Catholic Church have focused heavily on adorning the space in a manner befitting a cathedral.

—I know you don’t find many new churches with this kind of elaborate artwork,— said Bishop Thaddeus Peplowski, leader of the parish and of the Buffalo-Pittsburgh Diocese of the Polish National Catholic Church. —We said, ‘Let’s do something unique.’—

The congregation also chose to decorate primarily in wood, as a reflection of its Polish heritage.

Churches throughout Poland typically are built with beautiful woodwork, as opposed to stone or marble, said Peplowski, and the faces depicted in Madej’s work have Slavic features.

The parish soon will begin promoting the cathedral as a pilgrimage site, and it is producing a book explaining all of the artwork.

The congregation is grateful that Madej, who lives in New York Mills, near Utica, was able to devote so much time to their church.

Parishioner Christina Giczkowski, of South Buffalo, said Madej’s art was something the church would be able to show to future generations.

—Anybody can go out and buy statues that are manufactured, and those are beautiful, too,— she said.

But with a sculpture by Madej, she added, —we know it’s an original, and it’s ours.—

Madej, a native of Poland who has been carving for more than 40 years, was equally thankful for the opportunity to be a Michelangelo of sorts for the cathedral.

—They were blessed years. I’m really grateful I was able to accomplish that. I was grateful to the Lord that he chose me to do it,— said Madej, 67.

Madej crafted the carvings out of various species of wood: oak, cherry, basswood, white sugar pine, maple and walnut to name a few.

He uses hundreds of chisels and a variety of power tools, including chain saws, in a studio in Sauquoit, outside Utica.

The carvings were done during his free time. Madej also is full-time pastor of two Polish National Catholic parishes, one in New York Mills and another in Syracuse.

Madej spent four years on the final installment, a moving portrayal of the 20 mysteries of the rosary that includes biblical scenes such as the Nativity and Jesus dying on the cross.

It is a fitting last piece, considering the cathedral’s name.

—I wanted to express the profoundness of the mystery of the rosary,— Madej said. —I would say it’s like a finale for that church. If we want to understand Jesus and his message and his Gospel, the best understanding is to go through his mother, Mary.—

The shrine is 20 feet across and 10 feet tall and is set off from other pieces by its colorfulness.

Normally, Madej prefers to let the color of the wood speak for itself, but in this instance, —It’s almost like I heard a voice saying I need to express in color.—

The hues are used to highlight the range of emotions associated with the four kinds of mysteries: joyful, luminous, sorrowful and glorious.

Madej, who has created sculptures for other churches in New York and Poland, said he would get up in the middle of the night at times to jot down ideas and drawings for the cathedral sculptings.

And always, the work was accompanied by prayer.

I saw this work on my last visit to the cathedral in Lancaster, and it truly is beautiful. It brought tears to my eyes. For more examples of Fr. Senior Madej’s work see the Holy Cross Parish is Syracuse’s site.

Current Events, ,

CommonGround 2010

CommonGround is the annual New York State arts-in-education conference that brings over 150 administrators, teachers, teaching artists, and community members together for three days of policy setting, planning, exchange of skills and inspirational speakers. This gathering contributes to fresh curriculum design, school reform and new models for classroom learning.

This year the NYS Alliance for Arts Education will be serving as the lead organizer of the conference, working in collaboration with Partners for Arts Education and the Empire State Partnerships, the NYS Department of Education, the BOCES Arts in Education Network, the Association of Teaching Artists, and the Capital Region BOCES. The 2010 conference will be held from March 24-26 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Albany, NY.

The Conference organizers are currently seeking proposals for workshops. Guidelines are located at the conference website.

Poland - Polish - Polonia, , , , ,

New Direction Band

Four former members of the City Side Band, Jim Raczkowski, Ron Urbanczyk, Bob Krupka and Gene Rzezenik have joined together with Bruce Nowak (sax and clarinet) to form the New Direction Band.

The Band will make its debut performance on December 5th for the fifth annual Euro-American Holiday Dance at Club Loreli in Hanburg, NY with the Auslanders.

Following on their openning gig, the Band will be featured at Kolędy Night at the Potts Banquet Hall on Saturday, December 19th. This event will benefit the Response to Love Center and will feature the St. John Kanty Choir under the direction of Larry Maguda.. Sister’s Johnice, Catherine and Rose will also be featured leading the Polish and American Christmas Carol Sing-A-Long.

On New Years Eve the New Direction Band will be setting the mood at the Matthew Glab Post Party in Lackawanna, NY.

In addition to our new name, new music and new musicians, the Band will be presenting the Stas and Stella’s Mostly Traditional Polish Wedding at dinner theatres throughout 2010 with some new skits and music. The next show is scheduled at the Lancaster Opera House on April 8th and on April 9th at Ripa’s Restaurant on Walden Avenue in Lancaster.

Poland - Polish - Polonia, ,

Ania and Piotr Filochowski in concert this Sunday

From the Kosciuszko Foundation: Ania and Piotr Filochowski, violinists accompanied by Charity Wicks, pianist in concert at The Kosciuszko Foundation:

Ania and Piotr Filochowski, violinists accompanied by Charity Wicks, pianist will perform a program of works by Brahms, Chopin, Paganini, and Wieniawski on Sunday, November 22, 2009, 3 P.M. at The Kosciuszko Foundation, 15 East 65th Street (between Madison & 5th Avenues), New York City, NY 10065

Ania and Piotr Filochowski are award-winning violinists and international soloists originally from Poland. They have studied with today’s greatest masters of the violin at The Juilliard School and Yale School of Music. Their mentors are world-renowned artists, including Itzhak Perlman, Anne-Sophie Mutter, Midori, Ruggiero Ricci, and Aaron Rosand. All their past concerts were received with great enthusiasm and acclaim, as was their concert featured on PBS, so do not miss the chance to hear the remarkable sibling violinists in their only New York City recital this fall! The program will feature some of the greatest hits for the violin, as well as other beautiful and fun works. It will surely be a concert to remember!

Admission: $20 Tickets available at the door.

For reservations call the Foundation Office at 212.734.2130 or contact the Foundation by E-mail.

PNCC, , , , ,

Our Savior Parish — Christmas Fair 2009 this weekend

Saturday, November 14, 2009 – 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM

  • Homemade Angel wings (Chrusciki)—¨ and baked goods for sale
  • Great homemade Polish food!!!!! Food served beginning at 10am—¨
  • Christmas crafts
  • Tin can raffle
  • Handmade quilt
  • —¨32″ LCD HD television
  • Grandfather clock
  • Hand-crafted gemstone jewelry
  • Warm & fuzzy – scarfs & baby blankets
  • Games

Sunday, November 15, 2009 – 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM

—¨—¨Spaghetti dinner served 12:30pm – 1:30pm

Our Savior Parish is located on the east side of North Beech Daly Rd. at 610 N. Beech Daly Road, south of Ford Road and north of Cherry Hill Road, in Dearborn Heights, Michigan.

All are welcome!!! Stop out and have a great time!!!

Call (313) 561-7281 for more information.

Poland - Polish - Polonia, , , , ,

Polish Film Festival at the UofR Skalny Center

From ROCNow: Festival celebrates Polish cinema

The Polish Film Festival, organized by the Skalny Center for Polish and Central European Studies at the University of Rochester, kicks off with a screening of Too Soon to Die (a 2007 film by director Dorota Kedzierzawska) at 3 p.m. Saturday at the Little Theatre, 240 East Ave.Before Twilight (2008) will be shown at 7 p.m. Saturday. The schedule of Polish-language films includes six features, selected documentaries and a collection of shorts. The festival runs through Nov. 18. Tickets are $8 ($5 for seniors and students). Call (585) 275-9898 or go to .

Friday, Nov. 13th

Polish Film Festival Grand Opening: The program features a panel discussion —New Trends in Polish Cinema and the American Connection.— Guests include Malgorzata Szum, counselor, culture and public relations attaché, Embassy of the Republic of Poland; film director Jacek Blawut and his crew; movie star Malgorzata Kozuchowska; and Sheila Skaff, Polish Cultural Institute, New York City. There will be hors d’oeuvres and wine. 7 p.m. Nov. 13. Rochester Academy of Medicine, 1441 East Ave. (585) 275-9898.

Saturday, Nov. 14

Before Twilight: (2008, 100 min. Director: Jacek Bawut). A heartwarming tale follows the residents of the Retirement Home for Actors as they are awakened by the vitality and enthusiasm of actor and elderly gallant Jerzy (Jan Nowicki) and his ambitious plan to stage Goethe’s Faust. Also showing is The Actors, a 28-minute documentary about the legends of Polish film caught during the filming of Before Twilight. A question-and-answer session moderated by Sheila Skaff of the Polish Cultural Institute follows the screening. The Little. 7 p.m. Nov. 14.

Too Soon to Die: (2007, 110 min., Director: Dorota Kedzierzawska). A solitary old woman, full of life and spirit, lives with her dog in her large house. She passes her days conversing with the dog, Philadelphia, while observing the world through her windows. Unfortunately, her neighbors are interested in buying her property to build apartments, and her son is willing to take advantage of the opportunity. The Little. 3 p.m. Nov. 14.

Sunday, Nov. 15

Drowsiness: (2008, 105 min. Director: Magdalena Piekorz). Through a combination of coincidences, three people suffering from insomnia meet and life gives them a chance to escape their lethargy. Also showing,Mother (2009, 15 min. Documentary). An examination of visitors to one of Poland’s prisons. Husbands, fathers and sons are on one side, and on the other side are their children, wives and mothers. Drowsiness star Malorzata Kozuchowska will answer questions following the screening. Reception in the Little Café. The Little. 7 p.m. Nov. 15.

Preserve: (2007, 115 min. Director: Lukasz Palkowski). After a stormy breakup, freelance photographer Marcin must leave his girlfriend’s luxurious apartment in Warsaw. He moves to a dilapidated old building in Praga where his new landlord hires him to document the state of the structure. Also showing, Woman Wanted (2009, 15 min. Documentary, Director: Michal Marczak). Portrays people who search for love. Presented by the Skalny Center for Polish and Central European Studies at the University of Rochester. 3 p.m. Nov. 15.

Monday, Nov. 16

Tomorrow We Are Going to the Movies: (2007, 100 min. Director: Michal Kwiecinski). Three Warsaw high school graduates from the class of 1938 dream of their magnificent futures. They are intelligent, handsome and optimistic. We see a glimpse of their lives on the brink of maturity, until the war begins. Discussion with Polish World War II veterans about their memories of Sept. 1, 1939, follows the screening. The Little. 7 p.m. Nov. 16.

Tuesday, Nov. 17

Four Short Theme Films: The Loneliness of a Short-Order Cook (2008, 24 min. Director: Marcel Sawicki). Upon arrival in Los Angeles, a young Japanese man learns that the firm he was supposed to work for has been closed. My New Life (2009, 30 min. Director: Barbara Bialowas). A couple in their thirties are trying to fulfill their dreams and aspirations.What the Doctors Say (2009, 24 min. Director: Michal Wnuk). An accident victim is a perfect organ donor for a patient who has been waiting for a liver transplant. However, the doctor who is about to declare the victim brain dead has to confront her mother first. And Anna’s Little Lies (Director: Krzysztof Bizio). A woman rediscovers the meaning of her life after a night of drinking lands her in the detoxification center. The Little. 7 p.m. Nov. 17.

Wednesday, Nov. 18

Gods Little Village: (2009, 110 min. Director: Jacek Bromski). In this comedy about Kings Bridge, the village’s bucolic, leisurely lifestyle is threatened by the upcoming mayoral elections. Also showing, The Glass Trap (2008, 15 min. documentary, Director: Pawel Ferdek). A group of Warsaw’s tough guys organizes a new entertainment: aggressive aquarium fish-fights. A closing reception will follow in the Little Café. The Little. 7 p.m. Nov. 18.

Poland - Polish - Polonia, , , , ,

4th Annual Polish Film Festival in Western New York

The Polish Legacy Project in coordination with the Permanent Chair of Polish Culture at Canisius College is presenting the 4th Annual Polish Film Festival. The festival features the screenings of new Polish films: Kinematograf (Animation, 12—, 2009) and Mała Moskwa, Little Moscow (114—, 2008).

Thursday, November 5, 2009
Riviera Theatre, 67 Webster St. North Tonawanda, (716) 692-2113

6:00 pm Kinematograf, Kinematograph (Animation, 12—, 2009). Dir. Tomek Bagiński

6:30 pm Mała Moskwa, Little Moscow (114—, 2008). Dir. Waldemar Krzystek. “Little Moscow” was the name given to Legnica where a garrison of the Soviet Red Army had been located since 1945. In the 1960s, every other inhabitant of Legnica was Russian. This is a true story about a forbidden love between a married Russian woman and a young officer of the Polish People’s Republic Army.

8:30 pm Meet the director, Waldemar Krzystek.

Friday, November 6, 2009
Montante Cultural Center, 2001 Main St., Buffalo, (716) 883-7000

6:00 pm Generał Nil, General Nil (120—, 2009). Dir. Ryszard Bugajski. The action of the film takes place between 1947 and 1953, and reconstructs the last years of general August Emil Fieldorf’s life (pseudonym “Nil”), a legendary commander in chief of Armia Krajowa Kedyw, who was falsely accused and sentenced to death by the communist regime. The film shows his return from the prisoners-of-war camp in the USSR, arrest, interrogation, and finally the period shortly before the verdict and his execution.

Saturday, November 7, 2009
Hamburg Palace, 31 Buffalo Street, Hamburg, (716) 649-2295

3:00 pm Children in Exile: Recollections of Children deported to he Soviet Gulag. (Documentary, 60′, 2007). Dir. Chris Swider

4:00 pm Rysa, Scratch (89—, 2008). Dir. Michał Rosa. Set in the contemporary university town of Kraków. Joanna and Jan are a middle-aged, loving married couple. One day Joanna receives a note from some obliging soul informing her about an alleged wicked deed committed by her husband in the past. The allegations gradually cast a shadow over their relationship.

Sunday, November 8, 2009
Montante Cultural Center, 2001 Main St., Buffalo, (716) 883-7000

2:00 pm Ile waży koń trojański? How Much Does The Trojan Horse Weigh? (122—, 2008). Dir. Juliusz Machulski. It’s the dawn of the new millennium and successful businesswoman Zosia is celebrating her fortieth birthday with her dream partner, scriptwriter Kuba, and Florka, her daughter from her first marriage. She is quite unaware that her fond wish to be fifteen years younger is about to come true…

All films will feature English subtitles
General Admission $5

Poetry, Poland - Polish - Polonia, , ,

Slavic poetry events

From the AmPol Eagle: An Evening of Slavic Poetry

“An Evening of Slavic Poetry” co-sponsored by the Polish Cultural Foundation, the NY Library Association and Buffalo State College was held at Buffalo State College on Oct. 16. It featured the work of Vasyl Machno (Ukraine), Goran Simic (Bosnia-Herzegovina) and Andrey Gritsman (Russia). During the event, it was announced that “An Afternoon of Polish Poetry” will be presented at the Buffalo State College Butler Library at 2 p.m. on Sat., Dec. 5, and the winner of the U.S. Chopin Piano Competition will perform in the Rockwell Hall Performing Arts Center on the Buffalo State College campus at 4 p.m. on Sun., Sept. 12, 2010.

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