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The history of the manggha Centre/Museum of Japanese Art and Technology is a history of several people to whom Japan, its art, culture and technology are an ideal worthy of study; it is also a history of a series of small events, auspicious circumstances and good spirits, both Polish and Japanese…The Centre has existed for a mere 13 years, but its history begins much, much earlier… Polish Japonism – dating back to the late 19th and early 20th century – was an encounter of Polish artists with the art and culture of Japan which came about thanks to Poland’s greatest collector of that art – Feliks ‘Manggha’ Jasieński (1861 – 1929). Jasieński exhibited his extraordinary collection several times between 1901 and 1913 in Warsaw, Krakow and Lvov – “he was the one who showed us Japan.” Japanese art – received coolly at first – after enthusiastic articles by Zenon ‘Miriam’ Przesmycki began to gain an ever wider following. At first, artists’ interest was confined to formal moves, such as including Japanese decoration and attributes in their modernist paintings (Pankiewicz, Boznańska), but later on it became much profounder and more complex, involving, inter alia, the use of Japanese means of artistic expression: the way images are framed, the use of silhouettes, etc. Soon Japonism became manifest in literature of the period as well. Feliks Jasieński – by importing, with unwavering enthusiasm, sundry “Japanese wonders” into Poland via Paris, Munich and Vienna – gathered a collection of approximately 15,000 items. After numerous perturbations and scandals, he submitted his collection to the National Museum in Krakow in 1920. That did not go smoothly either, because the Museum did not want to accept the generous gift at first. Jasieński, a man with a great heart and the soul of a true patron of the arts, included the already priceless collection in his last will and testament. Accused of donating to the Capital and Royal City of Krakow “a collection of goods that are worthless and detrimental to the development of the Polish soul,” he changed his will several times. The collection had to stay in his flat – filled to the brim and beyond – because the Museum had no room for it. Only after Jasieński’s death was the collection deposited in the Szołayski House (donated for this express purpose by Włodzimiera and Adam Szołayski). It is true that several exhibitions were held, but then the war started and the collection was put to a hard test. There was a real danger that the Germans would appropriate it in part or in whole. It can actually be considered surprising that it spent entire duration of Hitler’s occupation of Poland in its storage rooms, guarded diligently by the Museum staff and… the Germans, who were perfectly aware of its value, which was soon confirmed by the exhibition they prepared in 1944. Out of the rich collection, the Germans took only (or no fewer than) 515 woodblock prints as their loot: these included works by Utamaro, Harunobu, Hokusai, Hiroshige, Shunsho, Toyokuni and Masayoshi, and 17 paintings. The 19-yaer-old Andrzej Wajda had a chance to see that exhibition in the Cloth Hall Gallery. It was shown for specific reasons: Japan was then one of the Axis countries. He was enthralled by Japanese art: “I had never seen so much brightness, order and sense of harmony,” he would say years later; “it was the first time in my life that I encountered real art.” In 1987, Andrzej Wajda received the prestigious award from the Inamori Foundation for lifetime achievement in film and the high moral standards of his work. The prize carried the value of 400,000 US dollars. When thanking the Foundation for his commendation, he said he would like to use it to build a Japanese centre in Krakow. And that was indeed what happened… In 1988, the Kyoto-Krakow Foundation was formed on the initiative of Andrzej Wajda and Krystyna Zachwatowicz-Wajda. Its first declared object was to “erect and arrange rooms in Krakow to accommodate the collections of Japanese art owned by the National Museum in Krakow.” The prize was the first contribution, which inspired hope but was no sufficient. Help was provided by the Japanese: the East Japan Railway Workers’ Union. They managed to raise one million dollars. All of that proved possible because Andrzej Wajda’s films had been known in Japan for a long time and propagated among a wide audience by Iwanami Hall, headed by Etsuko Takano, a propagator of Polish cinema in Japan. She also organised a campaign to raise funds for the Centre. A number of people – numerous Japanese friends, as Andrzej Wajda often says – helped to realise his vision. Another important figure was Arata Isozaki, an architect of international renown who decided to donate his building design to the Foundation. But before this could happen, he had to select the site. There were several options: near Mogilskie Roundabout, or in the district called Cichy Kącik (Silent Nook), or near the Vistula river, across from Wawel Hill. Today, that last location seems obvious, but back then… On this side of the Vistula, the bushes and decrepit temporary structures of some construction company made a fearful sight. Arata Isozaki did arrive. The site was elected. The design was created. Thanks to the favourable approach on the part of the city and voivodeship authorities, the building was erected at record-breaking pace. The formal inauguration was scheduled for 30 November 1994. The facility was officially opened by President Lech Wałęsa and Prince Takamado of the Japanese imperial family. The Centre was released to the National Museum in Krakow. It became one of its branches and at the same time the official address of the Kyoto-Krakow Foundation, which began to organise a variety of artistic and academic events on its own initiative. The collection of old Japanese art began to be transferred from the storage rooms in the Szołayski House. It was supervised by the irreplaceable Dr Zofia Albertowa, a true expert on this art, who headed the Far East Department at the National Museum with tremendous commitment. Her assistance, already at the stage when the gallery was being designed, proved priceless: her suggestions made it possible to meet all the conservation and museum requirements for the furnishing of the exhibition and storage rooms. The centre opened its doors. It commanded people’s interest, intrigued them, and forced them to take a stand. After a few years, the Centre grew into the landscape of Krakow; its metabolic architectural form gained acceptance. What’s more, in 1999 it was granted the respectable title of ‘Krakow Favourite’! After 13 years, and several hundred events, we can talk about a friendly space, a great atmosphere, and openness. A building has been created which has tremendous potential, allowing for modern presentation of exhibitions, enhanced to accommodate a number of additional functions. Today, the Museum is an institution with such a wide range of activities that it has no equivalent not only in Poland, but perhaps also in Europe. During these 13 years, we have been visited by a number of celebrated guests: Nobel Prize-winning authors, such as Czesław Miłosz, Wisława Szymborska, Seamus Heaney; Japanese artists and world-famous musicians. But the greatest event was the visit of the Japanese imperial couple in 2002 – we played host to Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko. From the very outset, we have been cooperating with the Japanese Embassy in Poland, the Japan Foundation, the Pro Helvetia Foundation, the Goethe-Institute, the British Council, Polskie Wydawnictwo Muzyczne (Polish Music Publishers), and Polish institutions of higher education (especially Japanese philology institutes). The manggha Museum attracts good spirits, good and sensitive people, fine audiences and great artists – they are the ones who form it and justify its existence.
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