Forty years of the Ceramic and Sculpture Symposium is certainly a reason for pride and joy. The fact that a cultural event of international significance has remained in Bolesławiec is something of a phenomenon. It is true that Bolesławiec has clay and provides artists with very good working conditions, but it does not have a tradition like, for example, Kraków.
Over the years, Bolesławiec has hosted many outstanding artists from Poland and around the world, excellent sculptures have been created, and the symposium’s format has taken shape. The symposium, which grew more interesting and better known each year, including beyond Poland’s borders, became a cultural showcase for our city.
Artists value the excellent working conditions, outstanding atmosphere and organization of the symposia. Paulina Pokorny-Ziemba, a Wrocław artist who has participated in the symposia for many years, called Krystyna Gay-Kutschenreiter “the best commissioner in the world,” emphasizing that she had taken part in numerous symposia organized abroad and that none of them could match those in Bolesławiec.
It is therefore no wonder that the Symposium’s 40th anniversary was celebrated in a special way. The anniversary gathering of visual artists, held at the castle in Kliczków, was accompanied by a scientific seminar entitled “Ceramic Material as a Means of Artistic Expression.” Lecturers from the Academy of Fine Arts in Wrocław took part in the symposium, including Prof. Krystyna Cybińska and Dr. hab. Krzysztof Rozpondek.
The exhibition by Bolesławiec artist Czesław Matyjewicz, “Introversions – Incrustations,” attracted considerable interest and can be viewed at Kliczków Castle until the end of August.
Good music and entertainment should be part of any grand birthday celebration. Kliczków had both. After the lectures and the exhibition opening, a formal banquet was held, and one of the major attractions was undoubtedly a performance by participants in this year’s Blues nad Bobrem festival.