INTERNATIONAL FINE
ARTS COMPETITION
“PEOPLE DEALT THIS FATE TO PEOPLE”
IN MEMORY OF AUGUST KOWALCZYK
The origins of the competition are linked to the Month of National Remembrance when the institutions mentioned above and the Auschwitz Preservation Society organised trips every April for young people from Tychy to the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial Site. The first city-wide competition was held in 1993 due to pupils expressing their thoughts on visiting the former German Nazi concentration and extermination camp. The huge interest in the competition led to its first nationwide coverage in 1999, and the first international edition was held in 2005. Since then, the competition has been held every year, with previous editions held biennially.
In 2013, the competition was dedicated to the memory of a long-time friend of MDK 1 (Youth Culture Centre No. 1) and co-founder of the competition, Auschwitz survivor number 6804, August Kowalczyk. August Kowalczyk, together with other former concentration camp prisoners – Grzegorz Czempas, Florian Granek, Barbara Puc, Halina Birenbaum, Barbara Kruczkowska, Artur Krasnokucki, Wacław Diakończyk, Jerzy Fijołek and Jerzy Maria Ulatowski - shared their camp experiences with the competition laureates and for many years chaired the competition jury.
The post-competition exhibitions were displayed repeatedly beyond the walls of MDK 1 (Youth Culture Centre No. 1). In 1999, an International Seminar was held under the auspices of the “Building New Bridges” Project in Jerusalem. In connection with this event, the post-competition exhibition of the 4th edition of the competition was handed over to the Israeli Ministry of Education and Culture and the Israel Youth Exchange Council after a ceremony commemorating the victims of the Holocaust on 6 December 1999 in Jerusalem. The collection of works by young artists was donated to Yad Vashem to be presented as a travelling exhibition. In 2005, the 7th edition post-competition exhibition was presented in the Warsaw gallery under the patronage of UNICEF. The works of the competition’s 8th and 9th edition winners (2006 and 2007) were donated to the Centre for Prayer and Dialogue in Oświęcim. In 2008, the post-competition yield was presented in Poznań at the Complex of Music Schools and MDK 3 (Youth Culture Centre No.3) and in 2009 at the Archdiocesan Museum in Katowice. In January 2011, at Mariacka Street in Katowice, one could see the open-air exhibition “Child in Auschwitz. We remember...”. organised in cooperation with the Katowice Branch of the Institute of National Remembrance. In February 2020, the works of the competition winners were presented in Katowice at the COP headquarters on Młyńska Street as a commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz Nazi German concentration and extermination camp. The exhibition was organised in cooperation with the Auschwitz Preservation Society, the Centre for Non-Governmental Organisations in Katowice and the Katowice Branch of the IPN Struggle and Martyrdom Commemoration Office.
Three years ago, representatives of the competition organisers decided it was necessary to introduce changes both in the execution method of the competition themes and its organisational structure. For the past three editions, the competition themes have created a new space for intergenerational dialogue. Participants are encouraged to produce artwork regarding contemporary images of enslavement and present their thoughts about the subject of the camp and the theme of war and enslavement. Moreover, we want the competition participants to refer in their works to the memories contained in books written by former concentration camp prisoners and to draw attention to the relevant sentences voiced by the prisoners. We want to establish this intergenerational dialogue through such activities and create a situation in which young people talk, experience, and think about such distant historical events.
One of the forms of summing up each edition of the competition is a catalogue containing the awarded, distinguished and qualified works for the exhibition. The change of the publication’s graphic layout also draws the attention of a broader group of people to these painful pages of history. Equally, however, it indicates that young people today find themselves in various situations in which they experience humiliation, pain and suffering. The most touching works that appeared during the last three editions of the competition referring to contemporary images of enslavement arouse astonishment, surprise, and sadness and horror in the recipients. It is worth drawing the attention of future generations to the need to build respect and treat people equally, regardless of the differences that exist. Consequently, in this edition, we have decided to use the words of Marian Turski, spoken during the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, as inspiration for authors of artworks. These words still resonate strongly and are therefore worth recalling.
Young people over the age of 11 are encouraged to participate in the competition and are welcome to prepare works in various techniques and formats. Participation in the current edition is free of charge, which is also a key element for us, the organisers, as it allows more people to participate. Moreover, this year’s summary of the competition combined with the opening of an exhibition of the awarded, distinguished and qualified works will take place at the Auschwitz Memorial. We are convinced that such an exhibition at the Auschwitz Memorial will give it an additional symbolic dimension. The exhibition is also the result of excellent cooperation between the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum and the Kossak Family Artists Youth Culture Centre No. 1 in Tychy.
We invite you to participate in the competition and disseminate information regarding this event.
The competition rules are available at: mdk1.tychy.pl/konkursy/
Maciej Gruchlik, director of MDK 1 in Tychy
Anna Pasek, teacher at MDK 1 in Tychy
The August Kowalczyk International Art Competition “People Dealt this fate to People”
is organised yearly by the Kossak Family Artists Youth Culture Centre No. 1 in Tychy
and the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum.