The 19th Jewish Cultural Festival in Krakow will be held between June 27 and July 5. As always Janusz Makusz, director of the festival has organized an exciting program with all the usual performers and many exciting new exhibits, lectures, tours and musical artists.
Janusz Makusz, Director of the Jewish Cultural Festival In Krakow
Some of this years exciting new additions to the program are:
“Jewish Artists in Krakow between 1873 and 1939” in the Old Synagogue at 24 Szeroka Street, opening June 28.
“Made in Israel – Historical Posters and Photographs from British Mandate Palestine and Israel,” organized with the Farkash Gallery in Yaffo in the Museum of Municipal Engineering (Muzeum Inzynierii Miejskiej) at 15 Sw, Wierzynska Street, opening June 28.
- “Unpainted Jew – the 19th-century woodcuts from the collection of Alicja Schottlas” in High Synagogue (Synagoga Wysoka) at 38 Jozefa Street opening June 28.
- “Ze’ev Aleksandrowicz`s Photographs from His Journey to Japan in 1934″ in the Manggha Museum, 26 Konopnickiej Street, opening June 28.
- “Windows of Yearning, Windows of Hope – Nili Epstein and Szewach Weiss” in Grodzka Gallery at 42 Grodzka Street, opening June 28.
- “Peeked at through the Sky – glass painting exhibition of Alina Towarnicka Allerhand” in Galerie d’Art ‘Naif at 11 Jozefa street, opening June 28.
- “Illustration of Bible” exhibition of contest entries, in Klezmer Hois at 6 Szeroka Street, opening June 28.
- “Tzaddikim Graves” photography by Israel’s Sara Farenheimer and David Ben-Uziel in Jewish Culture Center, 17 Meiselsa Street at Plac Nowy square, opening June 29.
- “‘Jerusalem – Photographic Exhibition” in Isaac’s Synagogue at 18 Kupa Street,opening June 29.
- “‘Where the Past Meets the Future” by Faye Grajower in Galicia Jewish Museum at 18 Dajwor Street, opening July 1.
This year as in the past 11 years non-Jewish Poles who have been active in preserving Jewish heritage in Poland are being honored during the festival. Mr. Michael Traison, a lawyer from the U.S. originated the awards program. This year’s awardees are:
1. Joanna Podolska (Łódź) – a journalist, a publicist, the author of many articles about Jewish Łódź. She was an initiator of action “Coloured Tolerance,” which has been taking place in Łódź since 2000. The aim of the action is to defy intolerance, xenophobia and vandalism.
2. Ks. Leszek Sikorski (Bodzentyn) – since 2003 a rector of the parish in Bodzentyn. He initiated clearance of a Jewish cemetery in Bodzentyn. Together with inhabitants of this city he took part in works in Jewish cemetery.
3. Hanna Witek, Barbara Kwiatkowska, Bogumiła Porowska, Monika Mierzwińska, Agnieszka Wnuk (Ryki) – members of the Association of the Friends of Ryki. The authors of “History-Culture-Traditions. Jews of Ryki”. They proved that it is possible to bring memory of Jewish neighbors to life, despite small amount of archives.
4. Emil Noiński (Kałuszyn) – local regionalist. For many years he has been collecting materials about the Jewish population in his town. The author of numerous articles about the Jews of Kałuszyn. He publishes in “Rocznik Kałuszyński.”
5. Sebastian Rakowski (Otwock) – director of the Museum of Otwock’s Land. In 2006 he organized the exhibition “Jews of Otwock,” which was presented in several towns in Poland. He is a volunteer in the Committee of the Memory of Jews in Otwock.
6. Mirosław Łapa (Kępno) – the editor-in-chief of the “Week of Kepno.” He initiated the publication “Jews of Kępno” for which he used to collect the materials for a many years.
7. Katarzyna Iwańska (Wadowice) – in 2004 she was a curator of an exhibition about the Jews of Wadowice. She publishes on “Vadowiana” periodical. She take care of the Jewish cemetery in Wadowice.
8. Małgorzata Frąckowiak (Wrocław) – for a couple of years she has been taking effort to initiate clearance of the Jewish cemetery in Wrocław, in Lotnicza Street. She put in order many graves by herself. She was helped by the prisoners from The Penitentiary # 1 from Wroclaw. She made a partial cataloguing of preserved tombs – the list can be found on her website which has been working since the beginning of 2008 www.friedhofcosel.info
9. Jolanta Dylewska (Łódź) – “Po-lin. Memory scraps” film director. The film was awarded with Gold Warsaw Phoenix at the International Festival Jewish Motifs in Warsaw in 2009.
10. Agata Białas (Rymanów) – together with her brother Wojciech she takes care of the Jewish cemetery in Rymanow.
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