Can life be painted with colour, with the colours of the rainbow, and become a great adventure, a love of art and children, transformed into a passion for creating? Of course it can, and there is no need to look for examples in the biographies of great artists. It is enough to cross the threshold of the Bolesławiec MDK art studio, an enchanted land of beauty ruled by MRS STASIA. Together with children who love art and creativity as much as their guide loves them, she leads them through a mysterious, beautiful world of aesthetic experiences that is not accessible to everyone. The small rooms, crowded with a multitude of details, are filled with the atmosphere of a creative workshop, dominated by the colours of unique student compositions. This is a true kingdom of children's art, about which the outstanding expert Prof. Władysław Lam wrote:
"Children draw and paint spontaneously from the earliest years of life. If this inclination of theirs is not constrained, they mature artistically in a stereotypical manner consistent with the development of their minds. They possess a vivid, creative imagination as well as keen powers of observation, and thanks to this they can easily develop their artistic abilities."
This motto must be understood and embraced wholeheartedly. It is not enough to be a professional painter oneself to achieve success in working with children. One must love them, accept their identity and their distinct way of seeing the world. One must be a kind, open-minded and sensible guide, an enlightened adviser, a master of word and gesture, a restrained critic and a person with an authentic passion for creating—patient, understanding and tolerant. The combination of these many, seemingly conflicting psychological traits forms the profile of the perfect educator, which Ms. STANISŁAWA WOJDA-PYTLINSKA undoubtedly is; to her pupils, she is simply Mrs. Stasia.
Our heroine shows a photocopy of the diploma recently presented to Bolesławiec laureate Marcin BURŁAK, signed by President of the Republic of Poland Lech Wałęsa himself. A tremendous success, accompanied by high-level ceremonies, exhibitions, meetings and press publicity.
More than 25,000 works were submitted to the National Art Competition “Nature and Its Protection”, judged in three age groups.
In the youngest group, the six-year-old resident of Bolesławiec left his rivals no chance. The teacher remained somewhat in the shadows, but she too received a letter from the Adviser to the President of the Republic of Poland, Prof. Dr. Stefan Kozłowski, addressed to the MDK Art Studio, containing congratulations and thanks for the symbolic gifts brought from the town on the Bóbr for the President of the Republic of Poland. Let us add that the exhibition of the competition winners’ works was held in the Sejm building, and Prof. Kozłowski, their guardian and guide, enchanted Mrs. Stasia with his culture and kindness, as well as his truly fatherly care for the guests from the town on the Bóbr...
When I visited the art studio—without prior notice—the little ones were passionately carving the surface of linoleum with chisels, and soon serious linocuts began to appear, made independently with the help of a simple press. How much joy there is when a small child runs to his teacher to show off a finished miniature work of art... How much trust there is in clinging to Mrs. Stasia’s hand, in the disarming question of whether one may slide down the stair railing (only a few steps, and therefore safely), how much intimacy in the whisper: “I’ll carve the sun here too, all right?” The teacher nods in agreement, accepts the new idea, strokes the boy’s thick hair and smiles goodbye to the girl whose mother has come to collect her. There is something of a medieval ritual in the relationship between master and apprentice: respect and admiration, trust and affection, love and kindness, acceptance without coercion, barriers or aversion... If only schools were like this—childhood would shine in full splendour, and children’s rights would not require a legal formula at the UN...
But this is only an art studio, a miniature oasis of happiness in Bolesławiec’s educational community. The guide shows stacks of fabulously colourful works in the most varied artistic techniques—charming, captivating, unique, breathtakingly bold in composition and colour, genuinely beautiful. The successes and achievements could not be recorded even on a buffalo hide. But more about that—in a month.