We are not sleeping (1-50/52)

The action „We do not sleep” took place during one of official artistic events – IV Symposium and Exhibition „Golden Circle” in Zielona Góra in 1969. Three students of Tadeusz Kantor: Mieczysław Dymny, Stanisław Szczepański, Tomasz Wawak occupied the exhibition hall while the jury was discussing granting of the main award to the Symposium participants. The students put a half-bed and hung banners stating „We do not sleep”. A „Permanent Jury” accompanied them, consisting of: Wiesław Borowski, Anka Ptaszkowska, Zbigniew Gostomski (all three related to the Foksal Gallery) and Krzysztof Niemczyk (a writer and rebel, famous for provocative behavior), was debating over evaluation of performance of the action „We do not sleep”.
Niemczyk was to show the biggest invention in harassing the officials. Under his initiative, on the second day members of the official jury and guests arriving to the exhibition were greeted by banners: „We demand award”, „Sleep guarantees impunity”, „We demand control”. The 2 day action was a protest against official cultural policy, manifestations of „tightening screws”, which took place after the year 1968, and the critics, which on the wave of „normalization” even stronger dispraised new phenomena in art. The action expression was enhanced by performance of Anka Ptaszkowska, who has accused specific institutions and cultural luminaries with bad will, career hunting and expedience during the session dedicated to the state of Polish artistic critics. Provocation of young artists broke the limits, within which it was allowed to criticize the authorities. It was feared to receive serious reaction of authorities and closure of the Foksal Gallery, members of which were involved in this event. Although there were no such consequences, the action „We do not sleep” has divided the Foksal Gallery environment. Two reasons were counter-posed: a view that expressly anarchy votes should be muted and stronger control should be maintained over the gallery activities, and a „centrifugal” trend, manifesting in the aspiration for going out of the gallery, even at the risk of repressions from authorities. The latter position was expressed by the „New Rules of the Foksal Gallery” (1970), proposed by Anka Ptaszkowska and Wiesław Borowski, stating that the gallery should suspend for some time its exhibitory activities and inform about artistic activities outside of it. Fearing the consequences, a part of the Gallery members (Tadeusz Kantor, Wiesław Borowski) has rejected the „New Rules”. It has never come into life. The consequence of this decision was the leaving of a part of the gallery members (in particular, Anka Ptaszkowska, Henryk Stażewski, Edward Krasiński).
 


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